Filming’s been underway for some time now, but more are being added to the starry ensemble for Clint Eastwood’s latest film, a collaboration with Oscar-winning “Milk” writer Dustin Lance Black, which follows the life and career of legendary, much-feared F.B.I. director J. Edgar Hoover. “J. Edgar,” as the project is titled, stars Leonardo DiCaprio in the title role, with “The Social Network“‘s Winklevi, Armie Hammer, as his colleague/rumored love Clyde Toulson, Judi Dench as his mother, Naomi Watts as his long-time secretary and a who’s who of character actors in support, including Ken Howard, Stephen Root, Josh Lucas and “Justified” co-star Damon Herriman.
Only a few hours after it was revealed that “Burn Notice” lead Jeffrey Donovan, who appeared in Eastwood’s “Changeling,” had been cast as Bobby Kennedy in the project, yet another cast member has been added to the film, and it’s a name that it appears we’ll be seeing a lot more of as time goes on. Deadline reports that 27-year-old Miles Fisher has come onboard “J. Edgar,” in the role of Agent Garrison, a young FBI agent who interviews Hoover in the film.
As we know from our script review last year, the film uses a framing device, with a number of young FBI agents quizzing Hoover on his past as he writes his autobiography, each one eventually being replaced by the demanding law enforcement legend. “Gossip Girl” star Ed Westwick was announced some time ago as playing the first of them, Agent Smith, while Fisher’s role Agent Garrison, is the second. There’s no word as yet as to the casting of the final, the African-American Agent Jones, but we’re sure it’ll follow shortly.
Fisher’s been working away for a while, racking up credits on the likes of “Gossip Girl” and “Mad Men,” but he’s perhaps best known for his dead-on impersonation of Tom Cruise in the comic book spoof “Superhero Movie,” and for his starring role in “Pinkberry: The Movie,” a viral video parody made by WME that got some traction on movie sites last year. Watch both below. Fisher’s got a major role in this summer’s “Final Destination 5,” but his “J. Edgar” role is easily his highest profile to date, and we expect to see more from the actor following it.
We liked the script, with reservations, and the cast is certainly impressive, so we’re cautiously anticipating the film, even if, for the most part, Eastwood’s directorial work in recent years has been somewhat half-assed. One thing’s for sure: with a cast including the brooding, featuring the cheekboned faces of Fisher, Westwick, DiCaprio, Lucas and Hammer, Hoover himself would certainly have approved… “J. Edgar” will reach theaters sometime in the fall.