Cameron Diaz joins Ridley Scott's 'The Counselor'

Now this comes as a shock. When last we heard on Ridley Scott and Cormac McCarthy's The Counselor, we were faced with the possibility of two Hollywood power couples prancing around on set while the paparazzi wet themselves at the thought. With Brad Pitt and Javier Bardem already on board, the two female roles were up for grabs by their significant others, Angelina Jolie and Penelope Cruz. Exactly who was up for what part was totally in question, and varied depending on which site you read.

Now Twitch reports that one of those roles has been filled, and it wasn't by either actress. Cameron Diaz will take on the Malkina role, described as a hyper sexual Argentinian who is with Reiner(Bardem), an acquaintance with criminal ties that helps the titular counselor(Michael Fassbender) enter the drug trade for a big money score. Pitt will play Westray, a shady figure who goes along with the drug buy. Jolie was more explicitly gunning for the Malkina part, and would have made for a more natural fit. Cruz would have made the most sense, though. Obviously, there's going to need to be some rewriting to change the character to suit Diaz, who is a very different actress than the other two ladies. I'm guessing Jolie's schedule filming Maleficent was the reason why she couldn't take the gig alongside her hubby.

This still leaves the role of the counselor's wife, Laura, up in the air. There's a part of me that still thinks all the reporting on this is wrong, and that Cruz will play Malkina with Diaz as Laura. We'll just have to wait and see. This would be a big move in the right direction for Diaz, who other than a decent turn in Bad Teacher, has been wasting away in crap for years. The Counselor has had practically every big name circling it since the day McCarthy finished the script, and I have a feeling the twists and turns aren't done yet.