First Trailer for Nicholas Sparks Romance 'The Longest Ride'

Get ready, gents, because another Nicholas Sparks movie is on the way to drive your girl to tears and...well, probably you too but for a whole different reason. There's a certain audience for these movies and it's pretty much those who keep thinking the next one will be as good as The Notebook. That hasn't happened yet, but maybe The Longest Ride will do the trick?

This tale of star-crossed lovers from opposite sides of the track stars Britt Robertson, Scott Eastwood, Jack Huston, and Oona Chaplin, with George Tillman Jr. directing. Unlike the basic Sparks narrative this one follows two different couples: one in the past and one in the present. Eastwood plays a champion bull rider looking to make a comeback who falls for a college student set to embark on her dream job in New York City. Country boy, city girl, how can these two possibly survive? By running into Ira, who inspires them with memories of the decades-long romance he shared with his wife.

The Longest Ride opens April 10th 2015.

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Jack Huston is 'Ben-Hur' in Timbur Bekmambetov's Remake

Most will recognize Jack Huston for his role as killer Richard Harrow on HBO's Boardwalk Empire, but he's quickly becoming known for his work on the big screen. He played Jack Kerouac in the underrated Kill Your Darlings, and found a spot in the star-studded American Hustle, romancing none other than Jennifer Lawrence. And more potential blockbusters have followed with Huston landing a lead role in Pride & Prejudice & Zombies, and now he's set to join Morgan Freeman in the upcoming remake of Ben-Hur.

Timur Bekmambetov (Wanted) is directing the redo of the Charlton Heston classic, which will center on the blood feud between falsely-accused nobleman Judah Ben-Hur and his former best friend, Messala who has him thrown into slavery. The most recent draft of the script was written by Academy Award-winner John Ridley (12 Years a Slave), and will parallel Ben-Hur's story with that of Jesus Christ. Tom Hiddleston had been up eying the Ben-Hur role but he seems to be out. Huston had been testing for Messala until Bekmambetov decided he'd be a better fit for the lead.

This version will stick closer to Lew Wallace's novel than the 1959 film, which one eleven Academy Awards including Best Actor for Heston. It was a huge production for the time and this one promises to be even bigger with a special effects wiz like Bekmambetov behind the camera.

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Jack Huston May be in the Mix for Marvel's 'Doctor Strange'

Although it hasn't been officially confirmed, and didn't get a single mention at Comic-Con, it's widely accepted that Doctor Strange will be part of Marvel's next phase after Avengers: Age of Ultron. Scott Derrickson (Deliver Us from Evil) is the guy expected to direct the film and a slew of big names have been mentioned as contenders to play the titular Sorcerer Supreme. Now comes word of one more name that may not be the most recognized of the bunch but would fit with Marvel's strategy of casting up 'n coming stars.

According to This is Infamous (serious "grain of salt" time here, folks) Boardwalk Empire and American Hustle's Jack Huston is "definitely in the running" for Doctor Strange, which would be his biggest role to date. Just recently Huston landed one of the lead roles in another major film, the long-developing Pride & Prejudice & Zombies.  Huston has been red hot of late and he certainly has the look of playing a younger Dr. Stephen Strange, which is probably the route Marvel will go if the intention is to build a franchise.  He joins a growing list of candidates that includes Jon Hamm, Tom Hardy, Edgar Ramimrez, Joaquin Phoenix, Jared Leto, and Benedict Cumberbatch.

Many are expecting Doctor Strange to be slotted for July 8th 2016 but no date has officially been nailed down.

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Gal Gadot Boards 'Criminal'; Jack Huston Confirmed for 'Pride & Prejudice & Zombies'

Ariel Vromen's debut feature, The Iceman, was a largely unimpressive crime flick. Pretty darn boring, actually. It featured a starry cast, however, and it appears Vromen is putting together an even better one for his follow-up, Criminal.  Adding a touch of superheroic power to the film will be Wonder Woman herself, Batman v Superman star Gal Gadot. She joins Kevin Costner Ryan Reynolds, Gary Oldman, Tommy Lee Jones, and the recently-added Alice Eve in the thriller about a dangerous prison inmate (Costner) who is implanted with the memories and skills of a dead CIA agent to stop a diabolical plot. Gadot will play Reynolds' wife. [THR]

After years of struggling to get off the ground it finally looks like Pride & Prejudice & Zombies is going to happen. Last week we learned Lily James, Bella Heathcote, and Sam Riley would star in the adaptation of Seth Grahame-Smith's horror novel, with Jack Huston in early talks at the time. Now Deadline confirms the Boardwalk Empire and American Hustle actor has joined the cast in the role of George Wickham. The story tosses zombies and kung-fu into the middle of the Jane Austen classic, with Elizabeth Bennet and her sisters favoring martial arts rather than sewing classes and tea parties.

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Lily James, Jack Huston, Sam Riley, and Bella Heathcote Join Revived 'Pride & Prejudice & Zombies'

Want to know what's fun? Recounting the troubled history of Pride & Prejudice & Zombies, an adaptation that has seen many directors and even more stars attached to it over the years. It started with David O. Russell, who quickly got too big for something like this, then Mike White and Craig Gillespie had a cup of coffee as director before dropping out. And the list of actresses who circled the role of Elizabeth Bennett is long with Natalie Portman and Emma Stone just the beginning. But last year things seemed to perk up with Burr Steers (Igby Goes Down) coming on to helm, and Lily Collins agreeing to star. Then....nothing. But like the undead the film has risen from the grave once again with a whole new cast and an actual start date.

Deadline reports that a Lily swap has taken place and now it will be Downton Abbey's Lily James starring in the adaptation of Seth Grahame-Smith's zombie period piece. She'll be take the Elizabeth role, joined by Sam Riley (Maleficent) as Mr. Darcy, Bella Heathcote (Dark Shadows) as Elizabeth's sister, and Jack Huston (American Hustle) in talks for an unspecified role which will probably be Mr. Bingley.  For an idea of what to expect, just know that Grahame-Smith is the same guy who gave us Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter, a mediocre book which was adapted into a terrible movie.

And y'know what? It looks like this time something will actually happen because production is to begin next month (!!!), utilizing a script credited to O. Russell and Steers. There is still a lot of talent here with O. Russell's screenplay and Portman producing, but zombie movies don't have the same appeal they did a few years ago, and just mashing up genres may not be enough to change that.

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Anna Camp Back for 'Pitch Perfect 2'; Jack Huston Takes 'The Longest Ride'; Brendan Gleeson to 'Trespass Against Us'

 * The Barden Bellas are back to full strength for Pitch Perfect 2. Anna Camp has signed on to reprise her role as vomitous team leader, Aubrey Posen. She joins the returning Anna Kendrick, Rebel Wilson, Brittany Snow, Alexis Knapp, and Skylar Astin amongst others, with Hailee Steinfeld one of the new faces. Posen was a senior in the last film so it'll be interesting to see part she has to play now. Elizabeth Banks is directing for release on May 15th 2015.[THR]

* Boardwalk Empire and American Hustle's Jack Huston has joined Nicholas Sparks adaptation, The Longest Ride. Huston will take one of the lead roles alongside Scott Eastwood, Oona Chaplin, and Britt Robertson, playing the younger version of Ira, a 90-year-old man stuck in his car after an automobile accident. Drifting in and out of consciousness, he begins having visions of the woman he loved before she died. A second interconnected story involves a young art student and the passionate love affair she has with a bull rider. George Tillman Jr. is directing The Longest Ride for release on April 3rd 2015.

* Brendan Gleeson has joined Michael Fassbender in Trespass Against Us, a gangster film following three generations of the Cutler crime family. Fassbender is Chad Cutler, who tries to find a way out of the family business while maintaining his loyalty. Also coming aboard are Rory Kinnear (Skyfall) and Sean Harris (24 Hour Party People), with Adam Smith directing.

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Emma Thompson and Daniel Bruhl are 'Alone in Berlin'; Nicolas Cage and Jack Huston Board 'The Trust'

Cannes is underway right now, and that means not only are some of the year's most anticipated films having premieres, but deals are being struck left and right. And now we have two more that feature a pair of veterans paired with young up 'n comers.

First up, Emma Thompson will star with Daniel Bruhl and Mark Rylance (The Other Boelyn Girl) in Alone in Berlin. Vincent Perez is directing the adaptation of Hans Fallada's book which follows an ordinary couple in the titular city as they mount an extraordinary act of resistance against Nazi rule after their son is killed fighting in WWII.

And next up are Nicolas Cage and Jack Huston (American Hustle), who will play dirty cops trying to discover the contents of a safe in The Trust. Their desire to find out what's inside thrusts them in the middle of a fight for their lives. Hopefully there's a little more meat to the story than that, but the combo of Cage and Huston could be fun. Ben and Alex Brewer will be directing. 

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Jack Huston and Toby Kebbell Eyed For 'Frankenstein'

After not really appearing on screen since Van Helsing, there are now a couple of Frankenstein movies in the works. One is the Aaron Eckhart-led I, Frankenstein, which nobody seems to be talking about. The other, simply titled Frankenstein, has quite a bit of heat behind it thanks to a genre-bending script by Chronicle scribe, Max Landis. Daniel Radcliffe came aboard to play a version of Igor a few months ago, and now two more names have emerged for the role of Victor Frankenstein himself.

Deadline reports that Jack Huston and Toby Kebbell are being flown out to London to read for director Paul McGuigan and 20th Century Fox. I thought Huston was pretty good in David Chase's directorial debut, Not Fade Away, and he's great as Jack Kerouac in this fall's Kill Your Darlings. I've never seen him in HBO's Boardwalk Empire, but supposedly he's good in that, as well. Kebbell is still probably best known for his breakout in Guy Ritchie's Rocknrolla, and can be seen now in Brit Marling's The East.

We're seeing studios do this a lot, lately, putting bigger stars in flashy supporting roles only to give the lead to a lesser name. Disney is doing it right now in The Lone Ranger, and Fox deserves credit for following the same path. Expect a decision to be made within the next week.

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Jim Sturgess, Garrett Hedlund, Joel Edgerton, Eddie Redmayne and more vying for Star-Lord role in 'Guardians of the Galaxy'

The red-headed stepchild of Marvel's superhero teams, Guardians of the Galaxy will certainly be the quirkiest film in their cinematic world. And so it stands to reason that an odd mix of talent would be in the running for the major roles. With the film only a couple of years out, casting is getting underway and a rather lengthy list of potential stars has been revealed.

Deadline reports that Lee Pace, Garrett Hedlund, Joel Edgerton, Jack Huston, Jim Sturgess, Eddie Redmayne, Sullivan Stapleton, and James Marsden are said to be vying for the part of Peter Quill aka Star-Lord, the leader of the space-faring heroes. Considering he's the only human in a team full of talking animals and extraterrestrials, Peter will likely be the main character of the film, and so it would make sense for Marvel to get somebody with a real presence. To me, that instantly eliminates Hudlund and the unproven Stapleton. Marsden played Cyclops in the X-men movies but did anybody really think of him as the team leader? Neither did I. Sturgess showed his actiony-side in Cloud Atlas recently, and Edgerton I think may be too old. That leaves Huston, Pace, and Redmayne, all of whom would make solid choices. Redmayne could be red hot after Les Miserables next month, and Huston has David Chase's Not Fade Away right around the  corner.

So who is Peter Quill, anyway? Born during an unusual astrological phenomenon, his mother was killed by an alien leaving him to fend for himself since childhood. He eventually joined NASA and through devious means gained the mantle of Star-Lord , an interplanetary peacekeeper.

That's a lot of folks Marvel's going to be choosing from, so we could be waiting awhile to find out who actually gets the job. Guardians of the Galaxy will be directed by James Gunn and opens on August 1st 2014.

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