Blog Stage - Acting in Film, TV, Theatre - Backstage

'Batman' and 'Spider-Man' Villain Casting Rumors

MTV's Splash Page reports that in an interview with MTV News, comedian Dane Cook revealed that he wants to play supervillain The Riddler in the next Batman film.

"I love the new Dark Knight series and Batman Begins," Cook told MTV News. "If they brought back The Riddler -- a new Riddler the way they did with The Joker -- that would be bad-ass. I would do that."

So, Cook's "original" idea is to play a comic book character that another, funnier comedian (Jim Carrey) has already played, in a style that another, better actor (Heath Ledger) has already played it? We can't believe this guy gets accused of stealing jokes from other comedians...

In other potential supervillain casting news, Rachel McAdams is apparently being considered for a role in Spider-Man 4. Mania.com reports that McAdams (Wedding Crashers, The Notebook) met with producers and "is said to be a top contender for the role of Felicia Hardy, known to comic fans as The Black Cat."

Artios Awards Los Angeles Recap

Lots of laughs and admiration filled the Hyatt Regency Century Plaza Hotel in L.A. for the 25th Annual Artios Awards last Monday. Each year at the Artios Awards, casting directors are honored by their Casting Society of America (CSA) peers for outstanding achievement in casting in theater, film, and television.

Celebrity awards presenters in Los Angeles were Ken Jeong ("The Hangover"), Keke Palmer ("Akeelah and the Bee"), Taye Diggs ("Rent"), Allison Janney ("Away We Go"), Lauren Graham ("Gilmore Girls"), Jim Parsons ("The Big Bang Theory"), Dennis Quaid ("Far From Heaven"), and Ray Liotta ("Goodfellas").

The event was hosted by John Michael Higgins ("Best in Show"), who had the audience rolling in the aisles, especially as he was introducing actor Ken Jeong. Michael Higgins instructed the actors in the audience to avoid expensive acting classes and, instead, do what Jeong did before his acting career took off:

Guillermo Del Toro Casts Himself in 'The Hobbit'?

While promoting his new film The Strain, director Guillermo Del Toro has revealed that he will play a small onscreen role in his upcoming film adaptation of The Hobbit. Del Toro will reportedly play a "small monster" in the Lord of the Rings prequel.

/Film reports: "Speaking in an interview on German television, Del Toro said the creature he will play himself is 'not an important one, just a background guy'." Watch the video interview below:

Del Toro later confirmed the details in a post on TheOneRing.net message boards:

I had a hand on the design of the creature and I will personally sculpt the appliances that will be applied on my face and hands. I used to sculpt the creatures for NECROPIA (my FX company) and I miss it a bit. I will have a line or two and die quickly.

Joss Whedon and Johnathan Groff to Join 'Glee' Club

Joss Whedon, the writer and director behind one of the most beloved musical episodes in television history (“Once More, With Feeling,” Buffy the Vampire Slayer) will soon be lending his talents to direct an episode of the hit FOX series Glee.

Whedon is not only the man behind Buffy the Vampire Slayer, but he also created the Emmy-wining online musical sensation “Dr. Horrible’s Sing-A-Long Blog,” starring Neil Patrick Harris. Whedon, the creator and director of Dollhouse, another FOX series, is set to direct one of the final nine first-season episodes FOX has ordered, since the show’s initial 13-episode run is already in the can. Glee co-creator Ryan Murphy told EW.com that he is “Thrilled [Whedon] will be loaning [Glee] his fantastic groundbreaking talent.” This will mark only the second time Whedon has ever directed an episode of a show he did not create; the first was an episode of The Office in 2007.

Whedon confirmed the news yesterday in a comment on Whedonesque.com:

“Hey kids and parents of kids and super-old, like ancestor-old-but-not-dead-yet-type people, just poking my oversized head in to say that the rumors are true... unless something very odd happens in the next few months, I will have the privilege of shooting an episode of GLEE. Why GLEE? Because I love cops, serial killers and gritty urban drama (I haven't seen the show yet). Why me? Because they're struggling and can't afford real directors…

“What can we expect from a 'Joss Whedon' epsiode of Glee? An episode of Glee. God willin' and the crik don't rise, a good one. A television director's job is, on some level, to be anonymous; to find the most compelling way to present a story without calling attention to himself. I had a wonderful time doing just that on The Office, and hope to again. A guest director can bring a huge amount to the party (we've had CRAZY talent on Dollhouse), but the party isn't his. I just want to work with good people on a show that I like enough to have watched every episode several times. (I lied: I HAVE watched the show. And seriously, when do the cops show up?)”

In other “Gleeful” new for the series, one of the Great White Way’s classic couples will be reunited when Broadway star Jonathan Groff joins his former Spring Awakening co-star Lea Michele, playing a potential love interest for Michele’s glee club queen bee Rachel. EW.com’s PopWatch reports that Tony-nominated Groff will appear in five or six episodes as the lead male singer of rival glee club Vocal Adrenaline. Murphy describes Groff’s character as “a male diva…a miva.”

Gael Garcia Bernal is 'Earthbound'

Gael Garcia Bernal is in negotiations to star in Earthbound, a romance starring Kate Hudson as a terminally ill woman who falls for her doctor.

Production is scheduled to begin Jan. 18.

-- Daniel Lehman

Zach Galifianakis Tells 'Kind of a Funny Story'

Zach Galifianakis is in negotiations to star in It's Kind of a Funny Story, a coming-of-age dramedy about a teenage boy who is sent to a mental institution after a bout of depression, "where he ends up in the adult ward and meets a number of offbeat adults as well as a quirky teenage girl." 

Galifianakis would play "one of the main adult roles." Emma Roberts is is also in talks to star as the teenage love interest.

Harris, Roberts, and Adams Visit 'Virginia'

Ed Harris, Emma Roberts, and Amy Madigan have joined the cast of the indie drama What's Wrong With Virginia. Jennifer Connelly stars in the title role.

Harris stars as a sheriff "whose state senate bid is jeopardized when his daughter begins to date the son of a psychologically disturbed woman with whom the sheriff has engaged in a two-decade affair." (Harris replaces Liam Neeson, who had been attached to play the role.) Madigan is attached to play the sheriff's wife. Roberts will play his daughter.

Helen Hunt Approached to Join 'Parenthood'

Helen Hunt has been approached to join the upcoming NBC drama series Parenthood. Hunt would replace Maura Tierney, who starred in the pilot but recently pulled out of the series to focus on her breast cancer treatment program.

Hunt would take over Tierney's role as one of four adult siblings, including Peter Krause, Erika Christensen, and Dax Shepard. Bonnie Bedelia and Craig T. Nelson play the parents.

The Oscar and Emmy winner is reportedly considering the offer. Parenthood would be the actress' return to series television and NBC, where she starred on the comedy Mad About You for seven years before a successful career in features (including her Oscar- and Golden Globe-winning performance in As Good As It Gets).

Christoph Waltz Is New 'Green Hornet' Villian

Christoph Waltz will play the villain in the action-comedy The Green Hornet.

Waltz, the 52-year-old Austrian actor who has earned rave reviews for his performance as Nazi Col. Hans Landa in Quentin Tarantino's Inglourious Basterds, will play Chudnofsky, "a Los Angeles crime boss who tries to unite the city's various gangs in order to form a supermafia." That's a bingo!

(Nicolas Cage was previously offered the role, but turned it down last week after negotiations fell through and a contract could not be finalized.)

Seth Rogen stars in the title role as a newspaper publisher by day who becomes a masked crime fighter at night. Asian pop star Jay Chou plays his martial arts-skilled sidekick and chauffeur Kato. The cast also includes Cameron Diaz, Tom Wilkinson, and Edward James Olmos. The film is directed by Michel Gondry.

Eva Mendes Joins Keaton and Wayans Jr. in 'The Other Guys'

Eva Mendes, Michael Keaton, and Damon Wayans Jr. have joined the cast of The Other Guys.

The new action-comedy from director Adam McKay (Anchorman, Step Brothers), formerly titled The B Team, stars Will Ferrell and Mark Wahlberg as cops.