* Shooting on director Gore Verbinski and Johnny Depp's The Lone Ranger is set to begin in just a couple of months, but casting is still pretty shallow. Depp has been down as Tonto for ages, and Armie Hammer is set to play the masked gunslinger. Tom Wilkinson is in talks for a role, but where the ladies at? Deadline reports that Ruth Wilson, best known for her role in the Idris Elba crime procedural, Luther, has won the prime female role. She beat out both Jessica Chastain(The Tree of Life
) and Abbie Cornish(Sucker Punch
) for the gig. * Paul Rudd has joined famed documentarian Errol Morris's adaptation of We Froze the First Man
, based on Robert Nelson's memoir. Nelson was president of the Cryogenics Society of California, and took part in the first use of cryogenics to freeze a recently deceased human being. The story will also draw from a story featured on This American Life
. The show's host, Ira Glass, is on board as a producer. Zach Helm(Stranger Than Fiction
) wrote the script. [The Washington Post]* Chris Pine(Star Trek
, Unstoppable
) is apparently at the top of MGM's wishlist to star in their upcoming Robocop
reboot. Part of their pre-packaged plan of rehashing all of their popular 80s flicks, they made a smart move in signing Jose Padilha(Elite Squad 2
) to direct. Pine is probably never going to be more in demand than he is right now, so signing him could be a smart move. However this is all speculation, and no deals have been made. I'm sure Pine's name is just one of many under consideration. [Twitch]
