Thesps sign up for 'Long Time Gone'

EXCLUSIVE: "Hellcats" star Aly Michalka, model-turned-actor Travis Fimmel and "Californication" thesp Madeline Zima have joined the cast of Smokewood Entertainment's "Long Time Gone.""Precious" producer Sarah Siegel-Magness makes her directorial debut with the pic, which stars Meg Ryan as a woman who suffers a nervous breakdown after her cheating husband leaves her. Zach Gilford and Graham Rogers co-star as her two sons who, along with the latter's live-in girlfriend (Amanda Crew), attempt to comfort Ryan in her time of need.Michalka will play Janine, a local girl who went to high school with Rogers and finds herself attracted to him despite being a few years older.Fimmel will play Jeff, an intelligent Grateful Dead fan who sells pot to Rogers, while Zima will play Annie, an earnest hippie who works at a food co-op and gets fixed up with Gilford.Karen McCullah ("The House Bunny") wrote the script, which is based on April Stevens' novel "Angel, Angel." Scribe will also produce with Bobbi Sue Luther and Gary Magness, while Andrew Sugerman and Seth Jaret will exec produce.Production will start next month in Los Angeles.Michalka, who broke out on the Disney Channel's "Phil of the Future," recently appeared in the Screen Gems pics "Easy A" and "The Roommate." She's repped by CAA and Prospect Park.Fimmel recently filmed the FX pilot "Outlaw Country" and will soon be seen in the indie "The Baytown Disco." He's repped by Paradigm and Management 360.Zima, who's best known for playing mischievous Mia on Showtime's "Californication," recently wrapped the indies "Crazy Eyes" and "Lake Effects." She's repped by UTA and Brillstein Entertainment Partners. Contact Jeff Sneider at jeff.sneider@variety.com

Taken 2 To Shoot In October

He will find them and kill them in LALast we heard, it was pencilled in for early 2012, but Luc Besson has just revealed that the sequel to 2007's scurrilous Taken will be bludgeoning its way before Olivier Megaton's cameras sooner rather than later. Shooting, in all senses, gets underway in October. After some back and forth in which there was talk of replacing Liam Neeson with Sean Bean, Mickey Rourke, Ralph Fiennes, Ray Winstone or Jason Isaacs, Taken 2, with its original star intact, was officially announced back in March. Besson has once again written the script in cahoots with Robert Mark Kamen, and Megaton, who directed the Besson-produced Transporter 3 and Colombiana, will be taking over the reigns from Pierre Morel. Besides Neeson, Besson has just told Coming Soon that everyone is back for Taken 2, including Famke Janssen as Neeson's estranged wife. He revealed that Megaton (typing that name just never gets old) has been scouting locations in Los Angeles, but said the production will only film there for a little bit , suggesting that the narrative takes us on the road again. Back to terrifying, dangerous Europe? Or will Neeson be kicking ass elsewhere?Since completing his atypical The Lady (the trailer for which arrived online yesterday), Besson says he and Kamen have already completed a further couple of screenplays, one of which is the Fifth Element to the Power of Ten that Besson revealed was in the works last autumn. He now says, mysteriously, that that's not a real sci-fi; it's kind of an epic thing.... The Lady will premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival next month. Colombiana, starring Zoe Saldana, is out in the UK on September 9.

L.A. Mayor Promises More Support for Film, TV Industries

NEW You are able to - La Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa stated he'd consider additional steps to assist the neighborhood movie and TV industry making LA an aggressive place for productions, including possibly reducing film permit costs and accelerating the enabling process, the LA Occasions reported. He also known as about the city legislature to pass through a bill that will extend California's production tax credits beyond 2012. A condition Senate committee is anticipated to consider the balance Thursday, based on the Occasions. Talking with several producers, location managers and industry professionals on Wednesday, the mayor reported previous steps to aid the entertainment industry, for example free parking on city lots. "We're doing a bit of things, and that is nice good, but we are able to perform a good deal more," the Occasions reported Villaraigosa as saying. "This is among the most significant industries for all of us.Inch But he also informed the city is restricted with a tight budget, saying: "You will find restrictions as to the we are able to do." The entertainment industry in La County directly utilizes about 140,000 people, based on the paper. Related Subjects

Djimon Hounsou Is The Angel Of Death

For Alex Proyas' Paradise LostThere is another angel in heaven tonight... Cinematically speaking, at least, as Alex Proyas has just added Djimon Hounsou to the cast of Paradise Lost. Based on John Milton's epic 17th century poem, the story will expand upon the massive spat in heaven between squabbling archangels Lucifer (Bradley Cooper) and Michael (Ben Walker), who have a big disagreement over God's sudden love for his new creation, humans. Lost's plot will also detail the angels' role in Adam and Eve's fall from grace. Hounsou's been picked for a seemingly fitting role - the imposing actor will play Abdiel, the angel of death. He denounces Lucifer's plan to have his fellow seraphs revolt and brings word of his treachery to God, only to discover that He is already aware of events and is preparing His forces to fight. Wonder if an angelic chorus starts singing Eye of the Tiger to pump them up?With a script in hand that has seen contributions from the likes of Byron Willinger, Stuart Hazeldine, Philip de Blasi, Lawrence Kasdan and Ryan Condal, Proyas will start shooting later this year, utilising performance capture technology to bring the various angels to life.

'Girl With The Dragon Tattoo' Star: Nude Poster 'Says A Lot About The World That We Live In'

"The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo" doesn't hack its way into theaters until the holiday season, but that doesn't mean Christmas won't come early for Lisbeth lovers. Following this week's revelation of character profiles and a brief glimpse at Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross' "Dragon Tatto" score comes a brand new image of and interview with Rooney Mara, the young woman starring in David Fincher's remake of the Swedish crime tale. In the interview with Entertainment Weekly, Mara talks about her audition process, her topless poster and what many consider to be the movie's or at least her character's most controversial scene. At that point I was just super frustrated," Mara told EW about auditioning for the role of Lisbeth, played famously in the Swedish films by Noomi Rapace (herself on the verge of a big stateside break in both the "Sherlock Holmes" sequel and "Prometheus."). "I was like, You have to decide. Either you think Im the girl or you dont. Theres not much more I can do to prove it to you. I went in there sort of ready to fight. I was pissed. But David sat me down and gave me this long speech about the part. Then he handed me his iPad, and it had the press release on it. He said, Im prepared to send this out. You have half an hour to let me know if you want the part. Undoubtedly an intense moment in Mara's life, but likely not the most intense of her career. That distinction is more likely to fall to spoiler alert, if you haven't seen the Swedish film or haven't read the novels they're based on the infamous scene in which Lisbeth is raped at the hands of her legal guardian. It was incredibly intense," she said of shooting the scene. "We did it all in a week the week of Valentines Day, oddly enough. We were working 16 hours a day, and it was really, really challenging, not just emotionally but physically. But its such an important scene. We wanted to do everything we could to get that right. After an experience like that, it's no wonder Rooney holds such a supportive attitude towards the controversial first "Dragon Tattoo" poster in which she appears topless. "I understand why there was a lot of controversy," said Mara. "People have a hard time with strong females and with nudity. But I think had I been doing something incredibly violent on the poster, people wouldnt have had a problem with it. That sort of says a lot about the world that we live in. Its just a teaser poster. I think it did just that. It teased people. Tell us what you think in the comments section and on Twitter!

Fox Orders Demetri Martin Animated Presentation From Chernin Entertainment

EXCLUSIVE: Fox is finalizing a deal for a presentation order to an animated comedy project from comedian Demetri Martin, Chernin Entertainment and 20th Century Fox TV. The pickup came shortly after the project, a family workplace comedy set in the Pacific Northwest, was pitched to the network. The former Daily Show correspondent will write and voice a lead character in the animated comedy, which he will executive produce with Peter Chernin and Katherine Pope. Animation is not new territory for Martin, who among other things is an artist. His Comedy Central series Important Things With Demetri Martin regularly featured animated segments as well as him doing whimsical drawings on a flip chart. Martin, repped by CAA and attorney Nancy Rose, had a development deal at CBS last season. This marks the second animated presentation at Fox for Chernin Entertainment. Its first one, Jonah Hill's Allen Gregory, went to series and premieres Oct. 30.

Miley Cyrus to Star in God-Designed Comedy for Vital (Exclusive)

Vital has preemptively acquired an untitled comedy pitch with Miley Cyrus mounted on star and convey.our editor suggests Miley Cyrus Dodges Hannah Montana Questions Throughout Jimmy Fallon Interview (Video)Miley Cyrus Defends Gay Marriage Tattoo Against CriticsMiley Cyrus Supports Gay Marriage With Tattoo Cyrus will produce together with her mother Tish Cyrus through the duo's Hope Town Entertainment banner. Also creating is Andrew Panay, whose credits include Wedding Crashers so when in Rome. PHOTOS: Hollywood's Twitter Feuds The logline for that high-concept comedy from authors Mike Brown and Jack Angelo has been stored under systems but it's understood to involve damaged offers to God. PHOTOS: Hollywood's New Leading Ladies Creating via Panay Films' is Adam Glass Jodi Zuckerman Weiner would professional produce. Brown and Angelo, repped by UTA, have setup several comedies out and about, including Undateable, with Adam Shankman creating, located at Disney. PHOTOS: Hollywood's 10 Greatest-Compensated Stars Cyrus, the first kind Hannah Montana star, has effectively moved forward into adult roles. She last toplined the Nicholas Sparks romance The Final Song and it has two movies within the can: Exclusive Media's action comedy So Undercover and also the Mandate comedy LOL, that also stars Demi Moore and Ashley Greene. PHOTOS: Nickelodeon's Kids' Choice Red-colored Carpet Cyrus is repped by CAA, Morey Management and Edelstein Laird and Sobel. Email: Borys.Package@thr.com Twitter: @Borys_Package Related Subjects Miley Cyrus Movie Casting

Who's the greatest superhero ever?

Love the Green Lantern? Worship Wonder Woman? Got a 'thing' for The Thing? Just who is the greatest superhero of all time? Vote for your favourite using the form below, and we'll publish the results in the next issue of Total Film, in shops on 1 September. Who's the greatest superhero ever?