RUMOR: Benedict Cumberbatch To Be Announced For STAR WARS: EPISODE VII With Leonardo DiCaprio And Dane DeHaan Linked For Possible Roles?

BleedingCool picked up on a report from FilmChronicles that states that British actor Benedict Cumberbatch (Fifth Estate, 12 Years A Slave) has indeed be cast in J.J. Abrams' Star Wars: Episode VII. BC reveals their backing of the site's reputation, something I can't exactly do myself. However, they extent a hand revealing that they've also heard the chatter of an official casting announcement coming from LucasFilm/Disney very soon. They mention names which have been linked to that talk includes Cumberbatch, Leonardo DiCaprio (Inception, Django Unchained, Departed) and Dane DeHaan (Amazing Spider-Man 2, Chronicle). If true, LucasFilm/Disney will likely announce something soon as production is expected to begin in January. Casting would need to be completed for pre-production soon, so actors can have enough time to be trained for the action sequences.

"There’s a lot of gossip swirling around that Lucasfilm are about to make a big casting announcement regarding Star Wars VII, and that casting announcement appears to be none-other than Benedict Cumberbatch, most recently seen in director JJ Abrams’ previous movie, ‘Star Trek Into Darkness’."

It's not hard to see why Abrams would consider working with his Star Trek Into Darkness actor again. Ben was the most impressive aspect of the film and his action sequences were top notch. Seeing him play either jedi or sith could be something that the new franchise could use. Dane seems like the right age for a character like Jacen Solo which Miles Teller might have recently tested for. I have to assume that DiCaprio is being considered for the role of Ben Skywalker. As he's a similar age to Ryan Gosling who was reportedly turned down the role. He had been in the mix for the villain role in Matthew Vaughn's (had been in the mix for directing Episode VII) The Secret Service (which includes Mark Hamill playing himself) but passed on it. Speaking of passing, Cumberbatch recently dropped his role in Guillermo del Toro's horror flick Crimson Peak for unknown reasons. The draw-back from his involvement with a Star Wars trilogy is that Ben might have to turn down possible roles in the MCU (Doctor Strange or Ant-Man). Depending on the size of the role, which is sounding could be the villain (according to BadassDigest). Perhaps, taking on the role of long rumored Grand Admiral Thrawn since the movies are likely to take cues from the expanded universe. BadassDigest in an updated post say that Cumberbatch might actually take the role of a Vader-type sith. ScreenCrush dug up Ben's quotes to TotalFilm about joining Star Wars.

"I thought, ‘Yeah, I grew up with them,’ and I just looked recently at when they were released and now I’m like, ‘No, I didn’t grow up with them, I was born with them.’ They were a huge part of my background, and my upbringing. I was much more connected to [Star Wars] as a kid, in the way that a lot of kids are because it’s immediate storytelling, very simple – a beautifully, outrageously simple narrative in a way – and a wonderful three-act melodrama, opera. And I loved them. I really, really loved those films and I always wanted to be Han Solo."

Leonardo DiCaprio To Play A Villain In Matthew Vaughn's THE SECRET SERVICE?

ContactMusic is reporting a rumor that Leonardo DiCaprio is currently being eyed by director Matthew Vaughn for a villainous role The Secret Service. The spy film based on the Mark Millar comic book focuses on a secret agent (Oscar winner Colin Firth) who helps train his young street hooligan nephew to become a spy like his uncle. Leo recently took on the villain role in Quentin Tarantino's Django Unchained which was a change of pace. No word on who would play the young street punk but Aaron Johnson had passed on the part. Production will begin soon with a November 2014 release date being penned-in. This would be DiCaprio's first fray into the comic book genre after being linked for a role in The Dark Knight Rises.

A New Poster For THE GREAT GATSBY

GREAT GATSBY Posters Show Off The Glamorous Cast And Costumes

Jay-Z Providing Score For THE GREAT GATSBY

This seems like another interesting composing move by Baz Lurman as it's being reported that Jay-Z will be scoring The Great Gatsby. His existing music has already been used in it's promotional material.

RUMOR: INCEPTION 2 Really Happening And Next For Nolan?

Inception is one of the highest grossing original films ever made making $820 million worldwide during it's theatrical release. It wasn't based on existing material and wasn't a sequel. However, it looks like Warner Bros. is eager to have Christopher Nolan develop it into a franchise with Inception 2. A while back it was revealed by actor Tom Hardy (via ScreenRant) that the cast had signed-on for sequels. Even Nolan commented on a potential sequel during an interview.

“It’s not something I want to say no to, but it’s not something I’ve given a lot of thought about.”

Over the summer a rumor sparked that Nolan's next film could be Inception 2. ComicBookMovie seems to have a source within Warner Bros. that could see the concept of inception actually being the star of the film. They say they'll ditch the original cast (already seems fishy) and focus on the military properties of the device. In the film Arthur mentions briefly the device was originally created by the military, a simple hint to a sequel? Apparently, if Nolan turns it down they're going to pursue it with another director. This sounds like a giant leap and could be completely fictional. That said, Christopher hasn't made an announcement about his next film, so anything could happen.

"Rumors spread that a group of people managed to pull off Inception, and middle-eastern terrorists soon catch onto the idea and plan to perform Inception on world leaders, forcing them to dissolve law and order". 

Shea Whigham Joins THE WOLF OF WALL STREET

Deadline reports that character actor Shea Whigham has joined Martin Scorsese's The Wolf of Wall Street. Shea is best known for his role in HBO's Boardwalk Empire but has had roles in films such as Sliver Linings Playbook, Savages, Take Shelter, Knight of Cups and Machete. The thriller stars Leonardo DiCaprio, Jonah Hill (Moneyball), Jean Dujardin (The Artist), Kyle Chandler (Zero Dark Thirty), Matthew McConaughey, Jon Bernthal (Walking Dead), Jon Favreau and Margot Robbie (Pan Am).

Jean Dujardin Joining 'WOLF OF WALL STREET'

It's being reported that French actor and recent Oscar winner Jean Dujardin (The Artist) is now in talks to join Martin Scorsese's The Wolf of Wall Street. The 80's financial thriller already stars Leonardo DiCaprio Jonah Hill and Kyle Chandler. Jean would play a Swiss banker involved in laundering illicit funds for the protag’s (DiCaprio) firm. Marty isn't messing around casting-wise and we should expect more big names to get involved soon as production starts.

SOURCE: ShowBlitz

Official 'DJANGO UNCHAINED' Trailer

New 'DJANGO UNCHAINED' Images Featuring Don Jonson And Kerry Washington

First Footage From 'DJANGO UNCHAINED', Full Trailer Tomorrow!

David Goyer Confirms The Studio Wanted DiCaprio To Play The Riddler In 'DARK KNIGHT RISES'

Here's a bit of interesting insight into the behind the scenes process of making The Dark Knight Rises as screenwriter David S. Goyer talks to Empire via BatmanNews. David reveals that studio executives at Warner Bros. were already talking about a sequel at The Dark Knight premiere. The studio wanted  Leonardo DiCaprio play a Nolanized version of The Riddler in the next film. Of course this didn't happen but it's another fun "what-if?" moment from the franchise.

“it’s gonna be The Riddler, and we want it to be Leonardo DiCaprio…”.

It confirms previous reports that Inception co-stars Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Tom Hardy and DiCaprio had been competing for the Riddler. Not to mention strings of casting rumors linked to the role. Nolan might have tried to fit him into early drafts only to give him the axe and make way for Bane. In the early days of Rises' development Michael Caine and Gary Oldman had teased on red carpets the Riddler would be the villain which might have come from studio people not Nolan.

You never know what the future of Batman holds. If Nolanites want this franchise to keep going it would be in good hands with someone like Wally Pfister taking over directing duties from Nolan. Bale has stated that if Nolan handed him a script he'd love to make another film just for the challenge. I'd love to see Jonah and Chris stay on as writers while continuing to work on their original projects as well.

Nicolas Winding Refn Could Direct Hitman Thriller 'BUTTON MAN'

Deadline has word that Danish director Nicolas Winding Refn is currently in talks with Dreamworks to direct their thriller Button Man: The Killing Game which is based on a graphic novel. The project has a script from screenwriter Hilary Seitz who wrote Christopher Nolan's serial killer thriller Insomnia. Giving the impression it could be ready to go into production this year. Nicolas just wrapped production on his next film Only God Forgives and seemingly won't be making Logan's Run anytime soon since plans for that production start haven't been made.

The action revolves around Harry Exton, a hired gun who’s offered a fortune to take part in a game organized by bored millionaires that sets trained killers against one another in a fight to the death. The fat cats bet on the proceedings, and when Exton gets disgusted and opts out, his only exit strategy might be to off the millionaires funding the competition.

ProductionWeekly had reported a rumor that Leonardo DiCaprio was in talks for Harry Exton. EW would later debunk the rumor and DiCaprio is not even involved. I wouldn't be shocked to see Ryan Gosling or Mads Mikkelsen step up to the plate here. Then again DiCaprio has been attracted to projects mainly because of the directors involved, so you never know if he'd turn down an offer if Nicolas was directing it.

Trailer For 'THE GREAT GATSBY'

'DJANGO UNCHAINED' Banner Spotted At Cannes

Kyle Chandler Joins Leo DiCaprio And Jonah Hill In 'WOLF OF WALL STREET'

Deadline reports that Kyle Chandler (Argo, Zero Dark Thirty) has joined Martin Scorsese's The Wolf of Wall Street which stars Leonardo DiCaprio and Jonah Hill.

Jonah Hill Joins Martin Scorsese's 'WOLF OF WALL STREET' Starring Leonardo DiCaprio

Deadline reports another addition to Martin Scorsese's Wolf of Wall Street which stars Leonardo DiCaprio. Jonah Hill has nabbed a supporting role in the film which isn't surprising after his Best Supporting Actor Oscar nomination for Moneyball. Hill will play Jordan Belfort's (DiCaprio) best friend and business partner in the film. The two actors would have originally been first seen together in Tarantino's Django Unchained but Hill had to turn down an offered role.

FIRST LOOK: Official Stills From 'DJANGO UNCHAINED'

It's Official Martin Scorsese's Next Film Is 'WOLF OF WALL STREET' Starring Leonardo DiCaprio

There had been some confusion of what project Martin Scorsese would be making next. He had his passion project Silence that had issues finding funding along with a return to the gangster genre with adaptation of I Heard You Paint Houses titled The Irishman. Yet, it's been announced that The Wolf of Wall Street is the next film for Marty. The film based on the memoir and true life story of wall street hot shot Jordan Belfort. It's been adapted by Sopranos and Boardwalk Empire writer/creator Terence Winter with Leonardo DiCaprio set for the role of Belfort.

Belfort, who founded one of the first and largest chop shop brokerage firms in 1987, was banned from the securities business for life by 1994, and later went to jail for fraud and money-laundering, delivers a memoir that reads like fiction. It covers his decade of success with straightforward accounts of how he worked with managers of obscure companies to acquire large amounts of stock with minimal public disclosure, then pumped up the price and sold it, so he and the insiders made large profits while public investors usually lost. Profits were laundered through purchase of legitimate businesses and cash deposits in Swiss banks. There is only brief mention of Belfort’s life before Wall Street or events since 1997. The book’s main topic is the vast amount of sex, drugs and risky physical behavior Belfort managed to survive. As might be expected in the autobiography of a veteran con man with movie rights already sold, it’s hard to know how much to believe.

First Teaser Poster For Quentin Tarantino's 'DJANGO UNCHAINED'