Joel Kinnaman may be considered by many to be a future star, but as of right now he's not enough of a name to get any film made. Even a movie with instant name recognition like Robocop would have a hard time drawing an audience with such an unknown in the lead, which is why MGM and director Jose Padilha have surrounded him with proven bankable stars like Gary Oldman and the newly added Samuel L. Jackson. The latest addition to the cast is someone who has squandered the momentum she once had, with Deadline reporting that Abbie Cornish is in talks to play Robocop's wife.
It's not just that 2011 was a bad year for Cornish starring in critically panned movies, but she was specifically targeted as a reason why they didn't work. Sucker Punch and W.E. hurt her stock greatly, and although she starred with Bradley Cooper in the sleeper hit, Limitless, she was a part of arguably the most ridiculous aspects of it. Then again, Robocop is pretty silly too. Kinnaman will play police officer Alex Murphy, who gets killed in the line of duty but is pieced back together as the cyborg crime fighter. Gary Oldman is playing the man who created Robocop, with Samuel L. Jackson as a TV exec. I'm assuming Cornish's character will still be named Ellen Murphy, who has no idea what's been done to her husband.
I'm a huge fan of Cornish, and think she's destined to be a great one. A role like this probably won't do much for her, but it's a solid part in a high profile flick. Robocop is set to open next year on August 9th.
