There's quite a cast building for the upcoming adaptation of "Bug" and "Killer Joe" scribe Tracy Lett's Pulitzer Prize- and Tony-winning play, "August: Osage County." Of course, there's the powerhouse teaming of Meryl Streep and Julia Roberts, but on top of that, names like Benedict Cumberbatch, Chris Cooper, Dermot Mulroney, Margo Martindale, Abigail Breslin, Juliette Lewis and more are also on board the film, which will see John Wells ("The Company Men") direct.
Now, there's another name to add that prestigious list with vet Sam Shepard joining as the alcoholic patriarch of a dysfunctional Midwest family whose disappearance teams up the strong-willed women of his clan, forcing them to confront unspoken truths and long-held secrets. And the steel behind the film doesn't end there either: George Clooney and Grant Heslov will be producing through their Smokehouse Pictures shingle. Lensing will begin next month in Oklahoma. [Variety]
Jennifer Jason Leigh is providing some veteran experience to the cast of James Ponsoldt's "The Spectacular Now." The actress will play the mother of Miles Teller, who tries to help an introvert escape life as an outcast. Break out "The Descendants" star Shailene Woodley plays said introvert with Brie Larson also on board the pic that is scripted by "(500) Days of Summer" pair Scott Neustadter and Michael H. Weber, based on Tim Tharp's novel.
Leigh hasn't been seen on screen since "Greenberg" from ex-partner Noah Baumbach but has a number projects in the works, including the role of Allen Ginsberg's mother, Naomi, in the upcoming "Kill Your Darlings," which stars (among others) Daniel Radcliffe as Ginsberg and David Cross as Ginsberg's father, Louis. [Variety]