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Wahlberg, Kitsch & Foster Up for the Navy SEAL Film 'Lone Survivor'

by Ben Pearson
February 29, 2012
Source: Deadline

Relativity's active-duty Navy SEAL film Act of Valor scored at the box office this past weekend, proving Americans still love war movies. Battleship director Peter Berg is certainly hoping that's the case, because he's prepping a new Navy SEAL film called Lone Survivor that's based on the memoir of Marcus Luttrell. Now Deadline reports Berg is looking to cast the four-member squad that will propel the film, and along with the previously announced Taylor Kitsch, he's now hoping Mark Wahlberg and Ben Foster will join his ranks. Wahlberg would play Latrell, who becomes the lone survivor after an ambush in Afghanistan.

Berg's relationship with this film is personal as he camped with a SEAL team in Iraq for a month before he wrote the script, and Universal promised he could make Lone Survivor if he directed Battleship first. This will mark the first time Wahlberg will portray a soldier in the Middle East since Three Kings, which really put him on the map as an action star, and I'm really looking forward to seeing him put his natural leadership and charisma on display to lead a team into action. Foster and Kitsch seem born to play soldiers, and Berg has covered some of this territory before in The Kingdom, so it sounds perfect to me.

Filed under Casting, Development, Movie News

From around the web:

Dkom7

The Book was really interesting. I'm not sure about Wahlberg playing Luttrell though. I'd prefer Kitsch over Wahlberg for the main role.
Xerxexx

Wait "Lone Survivor" there is three of them...? I'm in.
- Black
  
  Four. Great read, I highly recommend it (just finished it a week ago myself - once I started reading, I could not stop.) There are memorial videos on Youtube for the fallen SEAL's as well that are interesting and sad to watch.
Brian

Do we really think this is going to work after we've seen the best of the best in "Act of Valor"?
- MikeSantana7
  
  Agree I saw act of valor an that is the best movie I've ever seen!!
  - Ronzul
    
    Yes. Clearly you haven't read the book.
- Striker Samsung
  
  Um I think you should read the book and get your facts right before you grow a pair and question the story ok thank you
kenzie

Id prefer if lutrell played hinself in the movie. That would never happen though. So, Walberg it is.
http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=5111584 Nate Carroll

Yeah, we just had a SEAL movie with actual SEALs!!! Anything else is just shit
Black

Luttrell describes himself in the book as 6'5" in the book (and can be easily seen in Youtube videos while he stands next to other SEALs). I understand Taylor Lautner played Jacob Black despite the height difference between him in real life and his character - and I am not knocking on Mark Wahlberg at all, as I do like his movies - but it seemed to be a pretty big trait in regards to his personality and demeanor. Should they still choose Wahlberg? I know Hollywood can make anything work.. just food for thought.
- Black
  
  *Edit - wrote 'in the book' twice in the first sentence mistakingly.
Aussie Nate

Not sure about Wahlberg as Marcus Luttrell. The book is a tribute to heroes and wonderfully written. As another person said, Marcus should play himself, but I am sure there are other options the studio will consider. As for Ben Foster he would be a great choice to play Lt Michael Murphy, the team leader on the mission. He is an exceptional actor who would do a true hero justice.
Blurb

It's Mark WALBERG - the reporting on this story is utterly horrible, from all outlets. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1091191/
Luke

Mr. Pearson, Luttrell did not lead the squad of SEALs from Team 10 into battle. Subsequently Wahlberg will not be acting as squad leader as you claim. The team was led by Lt. Michael P. Murphy, who was awarded the Medal of Honor posthumously for exposing himself to enemy fire in order to send a mayday call back to HQ alerting them
Luke

(cont.) alerting them that they had been ambushed and surrounded. We owe it to the memories of these brave to get their story right.