The Bulletin: Speed is Cast

Emile Hirsch (“Lords of Dogtown,” “Alpha Dog”) will star as Speed, pilot of the Mach 5, in Andy and Larry Wachowski’s “Speed Racer” (May 9, 2008), an adaptation of the cult anime of the 1960s, reports Variety. Since January, speculation was, per a source at Ain’t It Cool News, Keanu Reeves would star as Speed.

The Scout Blog, January 2: Whoa! An anonymous tip to Harry Knowles' Ain't It Cool News from an employee at Warner Bros. speculates (with hard evidence) that Keanu Reeves will be cast as Mach Five pilot Speed in the Wachowski Bros.' "Speed Racer" (May 9, 2008) adaptation. The leaker claims a production slate document that disguises the high-profile pursuit as "Shaolin Cowboy" (a comic book creation of "The Matrix" creators') names Reeves as star. No clue in the file as to who might suit up in red overalls to play mischievous pet chimpanzee Chim-Chim.

Bay's New Armageddon
Michael Bay ("Transformers"), with Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci (J.J. Abrams' "Star Trek"), is in negotiations to adapt Whitley Strieber's apocalyptic novel "2012: War of Souls" at Warner Bros. Pictures, reports Variety. In "2012," an academic researcher enters a portal into a parallel universe to stop an armageddon.

Abuzz About 'The Green Hornet'
Columbia Pictures will develop "The Green Hornet," George W. Trendle and Fran Striker's classic debonair avenger of American radio, television, serials and comics, into a film. Neal H. Moritz ("The Fast and the Furious") and Ori Marmur of Original Film will produce. "I couldn't be more thrilled to be developing this world renowned property with the people who brought Spider-Man to the screen. I can't imagine a studio better equipped or more prepared to handle this kind of material than Sony. With the radio show, television program, comic books, and novels, there is ample source material to bring this classic crime-fighter to life," Moritz said. In "The Green Hornet," newspaper playboy Britt Reid moonlights as a crusader for justice, The Green Hornet, with Kato, a martial-arts master, to sting the criminal underworld.

Cruise's UA Signs Singer's Thriller
Tom Cruise and Paula Wagner's United Artists will develop Bryan Singer's next, a World War II thriller in which Cruise will star, reports Variety. The director will pair again with Chris McQuarrie, the screenwriter of Singer's "The Usual Suspects," and Nathan Alexander for the film, a dramatization on actual events in which German generals hatch a scheme to assassinate Adolf Hitler at the height of World War II. Singer and McQuarrie will produce, and Alexander will be co-producer. Singer's thriller, to begin production in the summer, will be United Artists' second production commitment, with the first, Robert Redford's political triptych "Lions for Lambs" (Nov. 14) with Redford, Cruise and Meryl Streep, already in production.

Jolie is 'Wanted'
Angelina Jolie will next star with Morgan Freeman and James McAvoy in "Wanted" (2008), an adaptation of Mark Millar's comic miniseries about vengeful assassins, for director Timur Bekmambetov ("Night Watch") and Universal Pictures, reports Variety. Michael Brandt and Derek Haas wrote the script, and Dean Georgaris ("Lara Croft: Tomb Raider — The Cradle of Life") did a rewrite to tailor the script for Jolie. Marc Platt, Jim Lemley, Jason Netter and Iain Smith will produce. Production begins in May in the Czech Republic. Then, in the fall, Jolie will star in Clint Eastwood's "The Changeling" for producers Ron Howard, Brian Grazer and Rob Lorenz and Universal, per previous bulletin.

'Last King' Director Out to 'Play'
Kevin Macdonald ("The Last King of Scotland") will direct "State of Play," an American update of the British miniseries about the mysterious murder of a congressman's mistress, with Brad Pitt to star as a reporter, reports Variety. Matthew Michael Carnahan (Robert Redford's "Lions for Lambs") wrote the script. Andrew Hauptman will produce, with Working Title's Tim Bevan and Eric Fellner, for Universal Pictures. Paul Abbott, writer of the original miniseries, will executive produce. "State of Play" will shoot in November.