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Casting Tidbits: Chris Tucker, Aaron Johnson and Ryan Phillippe

by Ethan Anderton
December 6, 2010

We are Sex Bob-Omb and we are here to make you think about Casting Tidbits and get sad and stuff. In a short and sweet story, Deadline has heard that Warner Bros. has purchased a spec script called The Rabbit with Chris Tucker (Rush Hour, The Fifth Element) attached to star. No details on the story have been given, but the source of the story compares it to the action comedy Midnight Run starring Robert De Niro and Charles Grodin. If Tucker actually stays attached to this project through development this will be his first feature film since Rush Hour 3 in 2007. Obviously no one wants that to be their last film, but I can't imagine him getting much better.

Second, it looks like there's a couple casting replacements on Albert Nobbs, a drama written by actress Glenn Close. Previously we'd heard that Orlando Bloom and Amanda Seyfried would star in the film from director Rodrigo Garcia (Nine Lives), but now ScreenTerrier reports Aaron Johnson (Kick-Ass) and Mia Wasikowska (Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland) have replaced the young actor and actress respectively. The story follows the titular woman (Glenn Close) in 19th century Ireland who disguises herself as a man in order to survive and work but whose deception leads her to an unusual love triangle. Wasikowska will play a beautiful, saucy young maid named Helen while Johnson will play handsome, bad-boy Joe, the new handy-man.

Next, Variety reports Ryan Phillippe has joined the cast of the heist film Set Up starring Bruce Willis and Curtis "50 Cent" Jackson. Jenna Dewan Tatum (Step Up) will also join the Mike Gunther directed film (he also wrote the script with Mike Behrman) which follows a group of friends who are catapulted into the middle of a diamond heist that turns deadly. Let's hope this strange collection of talent can deliver a decent heist film, because right now this sounds painfully generic at every turn.

Also, today a press release announced Lucy Punch (You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger), Bob Odenkirk ("Breaking Bad") and Rich Sommer ("Mad Men") are joining Jenna Fischer, Topher Grace, Malin Akerman and Chris Messina in the romantic comedy The Giant Mechanical Man. The story followsa misunderstood street performer and the soft spoken zoo worker who falls for him. Messina plays the aforementioned street performer while Akerman is playing Fischer's character's sister who tries to set her up with a pompous motivational speaker (Grace). Punch will play the street-performer’s girlfriend who disapproves of their lifestyle, but it's not clear what roles Odenkirk or Sommer will take.

Finally, some disappointing un-casting news comes from MTV speaking with Paul Rudd who revealed that he will not be voicing the new puppet character Walter in the forthcoming return of The Muppets. Last month we found out Rudd might voice the new young Muppet Walter who joins forces with Jason Segel to try and save the dying Muppet theater. Rudd says, "I wish that I was [in it]. It's all rumor. I wanted to be in it, and I talked to Jason, but I think there was some things that happened and I don't know if I'm gonna get to do it." Maybe there's still room for a cameo? I guess we'll have to wait and see.

Well, that's all for this edition of Casting Tidbits. Be sure to stay tuned for more casting updates on the way.

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