* Scott "Kid Cudi" Mescudi is the latest to join the cast of Need for Speed, the video game adaptation directed by Scott Waugh(Act of Valor). Already starring Adrian Paul, Imogen Poots, and Dominic Cooper, the film won't be based on any particular game in the franchise, but will be faithful to the series while celebrating the great car movies of the 1970s. Cudi's role is unclear at this point, but I doubt it'll require much in the way of acting. Probably more driving skill will be called for. [Deadline]
* Guess what's getting a reboot courtesy of MGM? Ben-Hur, the 11-time Oscar winning Charlton Heston classic, that's what. The studio is picked up a spec script by Keith Clarke(The Way Back) adapting Lew Wallace's 1880 novel, Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ. The story will follow the early years of Judah Ben-Hur and his childhood friend Messala, the latter betraying him and selling the former into slavery. That leads to a whole mess of chariot races and stuff. This one will differ from the 1959 film in that it will also tell the parallel story of Jesus Christ, who Ben-Hur meets on numerous occasions. There's still no director attached, but you know MGM wants their own slice of the Christian audience pie. [Deadline]
* While U.S. audiences mostly shrugged it off, Warner Bros. found greater success overseas with their Homeric adaptation, Troy. Now they're dipping back into the well again by taking on Homer's The Odyssey, only it'll be set in space courtesy of writer James DiLapo. Oi vei this sounds horrible. The original story followed King Odysseus' dangerous journey home after the events of The Illiad, facing down monstrous threats while at home his wife is being pursued by potential suitors. Brad Pitt, who played Achilles in Troy, was attached to this film at one point, but has since moved on. [Deadline]
