Having given late '80s/early '90s idol-turned-TV-hero Kiefer Sutherland a plum role in his last film, "Melancholia," ever-provocative Danish auteur Lars von Trier is looking to pull the same trick again, as Variety reports that Christian Slater is the latest unlikely addition to the director's next picture(s), his two-part drama "Nymphomaniac." Slater, mostly seen in strings of dreadful DTV actioners these days, will play the father of Charlotte Gainsbourg's lead character, joining Stellan Skarsgård, Shia LaBeouf, Jamie Bell and Connie Nielsen in the picture, which documents a woman's sexual life from infancy to adulthood. The trade also reveal that British model Stacy Martin will appear, playing the younger version of Gainsbourg's character. [Variety]
Elsewhere, veteran director John Boorman is on the comeback trail, planning "Queen & Country," a sequel to his autobiographical 1987 film "Hope & Glory," which picked up a Best Picture nomination and has set rising star Caleb Landry Jones ("X-Men First Class," "Byzantium") to star in the film. Whereas "Hope & Glory" followed Boorman's surrogate through childhood in the Blitz, the follow-up will involve his time doing national service as a teenager. No exact date is set for filming, and it's possible that the director's science-fiction picture "Broken Dream," which would also star Landry Jones, might come first. [Variety]
Next up, on the small screen, is some brilliant news regarding “Arrested Development.” Liza Minnelli will officially be returning to reprise her role as Lucille Austero, otherwise known as Lucille 2. Minnelli popped up in ten episodes of the show’s original run (admittedly mostly in the first season) and always proved to be a great foil for Tony Hale’s Buster. It’s great to see another of the show’s scene-stealing guest stars back in some capacity, however small the role may ultimately prove to be. [The Wrap]
Finally, Roger Michell (“Notting Hill,” “Hyde Park on Hudson”) is busy prepping his new film, “Le Weekend,” and he’s lining up an impressive-looking cast. Jim Broadbent, Lindsay Duncan and Jeff Goldblum have all signed on to star in his latest project. Broadbent and Duncan will play a married couple who revisit Paris for the first time since their honeymoon to try and revitalize their marriage, but while there they bump into an old colleague (Goldblum) who causes them to reassess their life and marriage. [THR]