Casting round-up: John Cusack, Stephen King, Clive Owen, and Morgan Freeman

Well, it certainly looks like John Cusack is hungry to get to work.  The actor has three projects in the works, starting with DUE PROCESS, a financial thriller to be directed by Paul Currie.  Cusack will star as a former fighting off evil bankers trying to foreclose on his land.  I almost fell asleep writing that, but there it is.

Then, there’s CELL, an adaptation of Stephen King’s novel about a comic-book artist who gets wrapped up in a zombie apocolypse that’s caused by cell phones.  I haven’t read the story, but it reminds me of the similar plot used as a joke in the comedy FORGETTING SARAH MARSHALL.  Originally set to be helmed by Eli Roth, who left the project, the script is being co-written by King and Adam Alleca with a director still to be named.

Lastly, there’s AIRSPACE, which is based on ashort story by Michael B. Chait, and described as a “DUEL”-style movie about a charter pilot who is flying home to his family, who discovers a mysterious briefcase on his plane, and comes under attack from an MIG fighter.”  If that’s not crazy enough for you, then consider that Roger Avery is working on the script and plans to direct.  Avery is the co-screenwriter of PULP FICTION who is getting back into the game after a stint in prison for vehicular manslaughter.  He previously directed RULES OF ATTRACTION and KILLING ZOE (a very underrated, crazy film). 

As for Clive Owen and Morgan Freeman, the duo is set to star in THE LAST KNIGHTS, about “a band of warriors who seek to avenge the loss of their master at the hands of a corrupt emperor.”  To be directed by Japanese filmmaker Kazuaki Kiriya, prodcution is set to begin this November in the Czech Republic.  No word on specific roles, but Freeman and Owen are a solid pair so it’ll be interesting to see what comes of this.

Cusack most recent work is THE PAPERBOY, which you may be able to catch in second-run theaters, while Owen will next be seen in BLOOD TIES with Mila Kunis.  Freeman will next be seen in OLYMPUS HAS FALLEN with Gerard Butler and OBLIVION with Tom Cruise. 

More as these develop.

As per that scene from FORGETTING SARAH MARSHALL and the CELL comparison…