* Ridley Scott is officially on board to direct The Counselor, the first original screenplay from acclaimed novelist, Cormac McCarthy. The story, which has been compared to McCarthy's No Country for Old Men, follows a lawyer who tries to dabble in the drug trade and get out unscathed, but finds it more difficult than he thought. Deadline reports that Michael Fassbender is Scott's first choice to star, and may be leaning towards taking the lead role. Filming could begin in early May, which would make this his first post-Prometheus gig.
* Now this has disaster written all over it. Dreamworks is planning a remake of Rebecca, one of Alfred Hitchock's finest works and winner of two Academy Awards including Best Picture. Steven Knight(Eastern Promises) will pen the script, adapted from Daphne Du Maurier's great novel about an American woman who married a rich widower, only to discover that the lingering memory of his dead ex-wife, the titular Rebecca, continues to have a hold over him, the house, and his staff. Hitchock remakes tend to go really...really badly, and Rebecca is one of those that shouldn't be screwed with. Knight is a fantastic writer, and since he's pulling straight from the novel I have no doubt the script will be up to par, but it's going to take the perfect director to not lose any of the film's spooky tone in favor of cheap thrills. [Variety]
* Even though filming has just gotten underway on Adult World, a new comedy from Scott Coffey(Ellie Parker) and starring Emma Roberts, casting is still rounding into shape. John Cusack and Evan Peters(American Horror Story) have joined the film which has Roberts playing an Ivy League graduate and wannabe poet who takes a job as a clerk in an adult bookstore to make ends meet. Cusack will play Rat Billings, her mentor and personal hero. [Deadline]
