* All the credit in the world goes to Shia LaBeouf, who has done nothing but take on one challenging project after another since excusing himself from Transformers 4. He recently starred in the Sundance film The Necessary Death of Charlie Countryman, and has stripped down for Lars Von Trier's Nymphomaniac, and even signed up for tank thriller Fury opposite Brad Pitt. Now he's set to star in Villain, a psychological thriller that David Slade was circling, but will now be directed by Juan Carlos Fresnadillo. Featuring a Black List script by Josh Zetumer, the film "follows two brothers who mysteriously re-connect in an unforgiving wilderness." One brother blames the other for his kids being taken away by social services, and exacts revenge by torturing him. [Deadline]
* Speaking of LaBeouf, he'll now be joined in Fury by Michael Pena, who re-teams with his End of Watch director, David Ayer. The WWII actioner follows a five-man American tank crew stuck behind German enemy lines at the tail end of the war. Brad Pitt and Logan Lerman are also on board, with Pena playing the constantly drunk tank driver. Pena's one of the best actors around, although his opportunities to prove it have been rare, so hopefully this will be a showcase for his abilities. Fury bowls over theaters on November 14th 2014.
* Tom Welling has been keeping a low profile since he stopped playing Superman in Smallville, and while there was a brief attempt to consider him for Man of Steel it obviously wasn't meant to be. He just wrapped up filming on the JFK drama Parkland, and now he'll join Draft Day, the football comedy starring Kevin Costner. Welling and Sam Elliott (The Big Lebowski) have joined Ivan Reitman's film about the general manager of the Cleveland Browns, who spends one crazy day trying to secure the top draft pick and save football in his city. Welling will play a veteran QB at a crossroads in his career, while Elliott is a college coach whose QB is expected to be a top pick. Jennifer Garner, Terry Crews, Denis Leary, Chadwick Boseman, Ellen Burstyn, and Josh Pence co-star.
