Olivia Thirlby jumps aboard Untitled Ivan Reitman Comedy

So this was originally called F*CKBUDDIES and it then understandably got changed to the infinitely more boring FRIENDS WITH BENEFITS. Now it’s UNTITLED IVAN REITMAN COMEDY. What could they possibly call it now?

Actress Olivia Thirlby (THE WACKNESS, JUNO) joins the untitled rom-com alongside Natalie Portman and Ashton Kutcher. Thirlby will play Portman’s sister in what’s being described as “an inverse ‘When Harry Met Sally’ about two people whose no-strings-attached relationship is threatened when they begin to develop true romantic feelings for one another.” The screenplay – from 2008’s Black List – comes courtesy of relative newcomer Liz Meriwether.

I hate this. Everytime I see a mention of the “Black List” (a list of the “best” unproduced screenplays in Hollywood) in conjunction with what sounds like a terribly contrived story premise, I always pause and never know what to actually think. Hey, studios: Since sites like JoBlo.com are essentially promotional tools for your films, why not give us something better than a logline that makes your Black Listed movie sound like every other formulaic piece of shit out there?

UNTITLED ARGLE BARGLE opens January 7, 2011.