Casting Bits: Dominic Cooper In 'Motor City;' Dennis Christopher In 'Django Unchained;' Callan McAuliffe In 'Paradise Lost'

Fresh from his turns in Captain America and The Devil's Double, Dominic Cooper is getting bigger roles. One is looking like the lead part in Motor City, the revenge thriller that Joel Silver is producing and Albert Hughes will direct. The film is about "a felon who, after being released from prison, begins tracking down the men who framed him." Hughes bounced to this after leaving Akira; Chad St. John wrote the script. [Variety]

After the break, new actors for Django Unchained, Paradise Lost and Neighborhood Watch.

Quentin Tarantino will repeat his trick of bringing semi-forgotten actors back into the public eye in his new film, Django Unchained. Tarantino has tapped Dennis Christopher, star of the '79 film Breaking Away and a player in Chariots of Fire, to play Leo Moguy, attorney to villain Calvin Candie (Leonardo DiCaprio). As I recall, there are one or two big dialogue sequences in which Christopher will have a chance to shine. But that's all it takes sometimes to make a lot of people take notice, especially with Tarantino calling the shots.Callan McAuliffe from I Am Number Four has landed in Paradise Lost, to be directed by Alex Proyas and very loosely based on the epic poem by Milton. He'll be Uriel, one of the Archangels and eventually second in command of God's army after Lucifer's rebellion. Bradley Cooper, Ben Walker, Casey Affleck and Djimon Hounsou will also be wearing wings and armor for the film's massive battles in the sky. [Variety]

Finally, the sci-fi comedy Neighborhood Watch, about a bunch of bored suburban neighborhood dads who form a suppsed anti-crime group and stumble upon a much bigger problem, has just gained a daughter. Erin Moriarty will play Vince Vaughn's daughter in the film. Ben Stiller, Jonah Hill, Rosemarie DeWitt and Nicholas Braun also have roles. Lonely Island's Akiva Schaffer will direct from a script by Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg; Shawn Levy is producing. [Variety]

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