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Casting Tidbits: Haley Joel Osment, Brian Cox and Chris Kattan

by Ethan Anderton
July 13, 2010

I'm going to kill you, Harry Potter. I'm going to destroy you. After tonight, no one will ever again question my powers. After tonight, if they speak of your name, they'll speak only of how you begged for Casting, and I, being a merciful lord, obliged. First up, THR reports Haley Joel Osment will return to the big screen (his last appearance was about 3 years ago in the 2007 film Home of the Giants) in the coming-of-age story Sex Ed. Marking the feature directorial debut of Isaac Feder, the story follows a college grad who dreams of teaching high school Algebra but due to budget restraints, ends up teaching sex ed, despite being a virgin.

Second, The Wrap reports that Brian Cox (Bourne Supremacy) has joined the cast of Rise of the Apes, the prequel and presumed franchise reboot of the classic science fiction film Planet of the Apes. Cox previously worked with the film's director, Rupert Wyatt, in the 2008 film The Escapist and he joins an interesting collection of talent including James Franco, John Lithgow, Freida Pinto and Andy Serkis, who have already been cast. The origin story deals with the aftermath of man's experiments with genetic engineering that lead to the development of intelligence in apes and the onset of a war for supremacy. Cox will play the villainous owner of a primate sanctuary who runs the facility without compassion for the animals that live there.

Next, Heat Vision reports the cast of the wholly strange sounding Guns, Girls and Gambling has added two more to its ensemble. Saturday Night Live alum Chris Kattan and Helena Mattsson (Surrogates) will join Christian Slater, Gary Oldman, Dane Cook and Megan Park in the story following the race for a priceless Hopi warrior mask stolen during a poker game at an Indian casino. Mattsson will play an educated, ice cold lethal hitwoman while Kattan will play Gay Elvis, one of a whole gang of Elvis impersonators. In addition, Variety reports Sam Trammell ("True Blood") has joined the cast as a no-nonsense sheriff who works alongside a corrupt sheriff (Cook). This film could either be insanely awesome, or unfathomably stupid. We'll find out.

Also, the sports drama Moneyball from director Bennett Miller (Capote) has gained a couple of new cast members. RiskyBiz has two separate reports that Chris Pratt ("Parks & Rec") and Kathryn Morris ("Cold Case") will join the adaptation of the 2003 Michael Lewis book about Billy Beane (Brad Pitt), general manager of the Oakland Athletics, who used sophisticated computer analysis systems to piece together a team that regularly contended for the World Series despite possessing a payroll dramatically lower than big-market rivals like the New York Yankees. Pratt will play Scott Hatteberg, whose career as a catcher for the Boston Red Sox ended after he ruptured a nerve in his elbow and could no longer throw a ball post-surgery. Meanwhile, Morris will play the second wife of Beane, a woman who loves baseball as much as her husband, so she understands and shares his passion for the game.

Finally, in an interview with Movieweb, John Hawkes (Me and You and Everyone We Know, "Eastbound & Down") revealed that he has landed a role in Steven Soderbergh's new virus thriller Contagion. He didn't reveal any details on his character being unsure of how much he should reveal about the story so all we know is the film will be an ultra-realistic look at a threat posed by a deadly disease, with multiple plotlines running through the film like Soderbergh's Traffic. Laurence Fishburne, Matt Damon, Marion Cotillard, Jude Law, Gwyneth Paltrow and Kate Winslet are already signed on for the film.

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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