* I thought this was pretty much a given, but it's been confirmed that Ben Affleck will be starring in his next directorial effort, the Israeli hostage film, Argo. He'll play Tony Mendez, the CIA espionage expert who puts the fake movie production scheme into full gear. Also joining the cast is the extremely busy Bryan Cranston(Breaking Bad
), slotted as Mendez's boss, Jack O'Donnell. They join up with Alan Arkin and John Goodman, but still no word on who'll play the actual hostages. * One of my favorite writers, Roger Avary(Pulp Fiction
, The Rules of Attraction
), is getting back into the swing of things after a brief prison stint for manslaughter. He'll be adapting William Faulkner's underappreciated pulp novel, Sanctuary
, for the big screen. No word on who'll direct, but the project is definitely an interest one. Set in the 1929 south, the story is a gritty, controversial one involving bootleggers, murder, and rape. It was adapted once before in the 1933 film, The Story of Temple Drake, causing such a stir that it helped usher in the Hays Code. [Deadline]* Warner Brothers has picked up a comedy pitch from Due Date
writers Alan Cohen and Alan Freedland called Swear to God. Will Ferrell is attached to star with his longtime collaborator Adam McKay set to produce and possibly direct. The buddy comedy will have Ferrell as a narcissistic hedge fund manager who thinks he's seen God. This one could be a long way off, as Ferrell has a ton of his plate and hopefully McKay will be busy adapting the uber-violent comic book, The Boys
. [Deadline]
