Woody Allen adds three Italian stars to Bop Decameron cast

Is it possible that getting away from Manhattan has invigorated Woody Allen's creative juices? His most successful recent films have taken him far away from the hustle and bustle of New York, granting him a fresh perspective. His latest, Midnight in Paris, is a perfect example of this, and currently lighting up indie theaters in preparation for a national roll out. However Allen is already hard at work on his next film, Bop Decameron, to be shot entirely in Rome.

Alec Baldwin, Penelope Cruz, Ellen Page, Jesse Eisenberg, Roberto Benigni, and Judy Davis are already set to star in the film, loosely based on the Decameron, a collection of 100 sexy 14th century stories by Giovanni Boccaccio. Now Variety reports that Allen is adding a bit more authenticity by bringing in Italian superstar actors Riccardo Scamarcio, Isabella Ferrari and Sergio Rubini.

Scamarcio is a heartthrob who made waves at Cannes this year in the Italian film, Polisse. He's also dating the super hot Valeria Golino, who folks might remember from Hot Shots! and Big Top Pee-Wee. Ferrari starred in the drama, Quiet Chaos, which also starred Golino. Rubini had roles in both The Talented Mr. Ripley and The Passion of the Christ. He might've been holding a whip. Does that narrow it down? Probably not.

Their roles are unclear, but what has been revealed by Variety is that Benigni's role will be a bigger one than initially suspected.  Woody Allen has also written a role for himself, his first on-screen performance since Scoop. The film will feature four standalone stories, two with American characters in Rome, the other two with Italians.

Shooting is set to begin later this summer.