This is why Jeremy Renner has like a thousand franchises under his belt. He says "Yes" to practically everything, and is always the first person studios call when they need a pinch hitter. Not only has he (sorta) replaced Matt Damon in the Bourne flicks, but now he's even subbing in for Batman.
Variety reports that Renner has replaced Christian Bale in the colorfully titled American Bullshit, to be directed by David O. Russell. With Bale busy on a twin-pack of Terrence Malick flicks, there was no way he could squeeze the film into his schedule, although to me Renner seems like an odd fit as a replacement. The film is based on the true story of Abscam, the 1980 FBI sting operation designed to put the kibosh on congressional corruption. Bradley Cooper is playing Melvin Weinberg, the con artist the FBI hired to man the operation, creating a dummy corporation and fake sheik used to entice politicians. Renner will play agent Jimmy Boyle, who works with Weinberg on the sting after once arresting the con man.
Renner's a very good actor, but not quite on Bale's level, if you ask me. So in that way I'm a little disappointed, but this sounds like the kind of true life story of political scandal that really gets me going. Now all they need to do is find a title they can actually put in a movie theater, which should be done by the time production begins next February.
