We've pretty much neglected covering the casting for Oliver Stone's next flick, Savages
, based on Don Winslow's 2010 novel about a pair of young pot dealers who run afoul of a dangerous drug cartel. While I was a bigger fan than most of Stone's Wall Street
sequel, Savages was a book that was completely unfamiliar to me and the subject matter didn't strike me as something that would play up to Stone's strengths. But it's hard for me to ignore the powerhouse cast he's putting together, and the fact that Winslow is scripting the film himself. Ok, he's got help from Shane Salerno(Shaft
), but I'll try to ignore that. Aaron Johnson and Taylor Kitsch are Ben and Chon, who receive a threatening message from a drug cartel trying to force the pair into working for them. Salma Hayek is the "Pablo Escobar" of the outfit, with Benicio Del Toro serving as her brutal henchman, a guy who likes to decapitate his rivals.
That's an impressive group already, but a few more names recently added have kicked this film to another level. Blake Lively will play O(short for Ophelia), Chon and Ben's friend who gets kidnapped when they refuse the cartel's offer. Jennifer Lawrence had been circling the role but with her hip deep into The Hunger Games there was no way she could fit this in.
John Travolta will be a DEA agent named Dennis, while Uma Thurman will be Ophelia's wacky mom, Paqu. I think this is the first time Travolta and Thurman will pair up since Be Cool
, but let's hope this one turns out better. Meanwhile, Emile Hirsch has just signed on for an unspecified role. As long as he's not playing a war vet like he did in Taking Woodstock
, I'm cool with it.
