What's Hot

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Welcome back to another edition of “This Week in Casting,” the column that gives you the rundown of who’s attached to the hottest upcoming projects in Hollywood. From big time players to fresh-faced rookies, we’ve got the week in review for you right here. This week, we’ve got casting news about Justin Long, Jamie Chung, Jena Malone, and many more. Get all the details below!

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BIG NAMES
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Justin Long to star in The Ten O’Clock People

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The movie: Based on a story by Stephen King, the film follows a man who tries to quit smoking and realizes that several high-ranking officials, including the Vice President, are actually monsters. Only those who are trying to quit smoking know the truth, thanks to a chemical imbalance in their bodies, so he and his fellow “ten o’clock people” (or folks who take morning smoke breaks) must band together when the monsters figure out they’ve been discovered.
Other projects: The most interesting project on Long’s horizon doesn’t have a title yet, but it’s an ensemble comedy that includes Emma Stone and Richard Gere and at least part of will be directed by The Hunger Games star Elizabeth Banks. Hmm…
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Jena Malone officially cast in Catching Fire

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The movie: After a tough battle with fellow contenders Mia Wasikowska and model Zoe Aggeliki, Malone has officially been offered the part of Johanna Mason, a key figure in the Hunger Games universe that will appear not only in Catching Fire, but in Mockingjay as well. Hopefully Malone accepts the role quickly so we can turn our attention to who will be playing Finnick Odair.
Other projects: She’ll lead a movie called Lonely Hunter in which she marries the same man twice. The man will be played by Prometheus star Logan Marshall-Green.
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Samuel L. Jackson and Angela Bassett starring in film adaptation of Broadway show Black Nativity

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The movie: An adaptation of a 1961 Broadway show, this story centers around a young man who visits his grandparents he’s never met (Jackson and Bassett) for Christmas in Harlem, and through a sermon from his grandfather and a stylized dream sequence, he learns the true meaning of the holiday and comes to appreciate his family. Jennifer Hudson is in talks to play the boy’s mother, but the role of the boy himself doesn’t yet have an actor attached.
Other projects: Speaking of Christmas, Jackson stars in Django Unchained which is out this Christmas, while Bassett co-stars alongside Gerard Butler in an action movie set in the White House called Olympus Has Fallen.
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Jamie Chung joins cast of ABC’s Once Upon A Time

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The show: ABC’s fairy-tale inspired show will star Chung as Mulan, the princess who blends in with an army of male soldiers to prove her worth. No word quite yet on how the character will play into the events set up in the series, but it’s said to be a recurring role.
Other projects: Chung will star opposite Joseph Gordon-Levitt in this summer’s bicycle action flick Premium Rush.
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Seth Meyers in the lead to take over for Regis

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The show: Kelly Ripa has been a smash hit with the daytime TV crowd ever since she took over for Kathie Lee Gifford, but now with Regis Philbin’s retirement, his chair needs to be filled. Looks like “SNL” star Seth Meyers is expected to take over for ol’ Reege. If these guys stick around for their entire careers on this show, they’ll likely have a huge fanbase when our generation gets old enough to watch this show every day.
Other projects: He’s writing and starring in a film called Key Party set to come out next year, in which a couple attends a key party (I don’t really know what that is either) to improve their love life, but the results end up being disastrous.
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RISING STARS
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Luis Guzman starring in Aztec Warrior

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The movie: After spending years as a supporting player in Hollywood, Luis Guzman is finally getting his shot at a lead role. He’ll take on the title character in Aztec Warrior, a Mexican wrestler who battles a rival named El Diablo in the ring. It’s unclear whether the movie is meant to be serious, or more of a comedy like Nacho Libre.
Where you might have seen him: In everything from The Count of Monte Cristo to Boogie Nights to the restaurant comedy Waiting… with Ryan Reynolds. Dude’s been around for a long time.
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Elizabeth Mitchell has joined the cast of Revolution

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The show: Jon Favreau directed the pilot of this new J.J. Abrams show, which centers around what happens to society when all of the power on Earth mysteriously shuts off. Mitchell will play two characters’ mother, who appears in flashbacks, but she’ll be regularly appearing on the show.
Where you might have seen her: She’s most famous for starring in later seasons of another J.J. Abrams show, “LOST.”
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Colman Domingo will appear in The Butler

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The movie: Precious director Lee Daniels is directing this film, which stars Forrest Whitaker as a White House butler who serves under eight different Presidents over thirty years. The cast includes Matthew McConaughey as JFK, Alan Rickman as Ronald Reagan, Cuba Gooding Jr., David Oyelowo, Alex Pettyfer, and John Cusack. Domingo will play another butler alongside Whitaker.
Where you might have seen him: He’s got supporting roles in Spike Lee’s Red Hook Summer and Steven Spielberg’s upcoming film Lincoln.