You have indie actor Ryan Gosling taking the Jason Statham route, and finally, Carey Mulligan, the pint-sized actress might play the bad girl on Drive - a Universal Pictures action burning rubber flick that is set to begin shooting in Los Angeles next month.

With Rachel McAdams cast and the city of Toronto serving as the backdrop, the addition of Scott Speedman makes Michael Sucsy's directing debut theatrical (he received a ton of praise for HBO's Grey Gardens) an almost all "Canadian" affair.

After much ink was spilled on who would be cast as Lisbeth Salander, Mara beat out some European and Aussie talents for what is a three picture paycheck type of deal. If Mara isn't already hitting the gym, she might want to follow the regiment that Noomi Rapace followed for her work on the trilogy. The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo begins production this fall, with a release date of Dec. 21, 2011

Not much production news had been mentioned on the development of Vlad since a pair of mentions in winter of 09' and early spring this year, but if we go by Princess Lia of Romania's words who was present at the exhibition "Dracula - prince or vampire" hosted by the National Art Museum, then production will indeed begin sometime soon. Confirming that the outside shots of this movie will be filmed at Curtea de Arges, in Romania, and that the interiors, will be filmed in Bulgaria, we should expect some casting news to eventually make the rounds.

An example of what one breakout indie film debut can do for a filmmaker, Craig Zobel who already has his hands full in next project options with Monster Safari, Turkey in the Straw, Gizmondo and Loudermilk, can now add a fifth potential project in the shape of a studio comedy that dates back to when Fox had the Fox Atomic youth label. THR reports that Zobel has become attached to direct The Litigator...

We'll soon be finding Jessica Chastain in a plethora of film roles in the autumn this year (THR reports that Miramax is somehow still afloat and releasing The Debt in October) and she is booking a role for next month in Greenwood, Mississippi on Tate Taylor's The Help (he was recently seen in a bit part in Winter's Bone).

There are so many items in this press release that you wouldn't normally see paired together. First we have Brett Ratner lending his name and expertise to a Bollywood production that was filmed in the U.S. And then we have Mark Urman’s Paladin distribution label on board.

The chances of us finding the next Walter Salles or Fernando Meirelles via Carlos Diegues' 5XFavela are next to nil, but I'd argue that's besides the point. Amongst Cannes' feel good stories this year will be this one, a Special Screening selection just added by Cannes today.

Currently in production, Variety has named the final names to be cast (John Hurt and Isabel Lucas) in the epic swirling in Greek mythology, and in the same measure have cleared up this confusing mess of what title the final title will be called.

Don't worry folks - this won't go the way of the uncompleted Nailed -- the abandoned David O. Russell project. ThePlaylist makes the logical connection that new paparazzo images showing Mark Wahlberg without the washboard stomach are just the final shots required for the sequences that demonstrate the character of Mickey Ward getting into shape.

I think it was in 1988 when I first started getting into Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert who took great pleasure in ripping into films and each another. If tonight's announcement tells us anything, it's that, when everyone is chummy, and agreeing to agree or disagree, it makes for boring television and what I imagine was a ratings falloff for several post-Ebert years now.

Noah Baumbach had invested a considerable amount of time penning The Emperor's Children and his TLC might have convinced Imagine Ent. to logically go with the Greenberg director instead. Production begins as soon as this Summer.

No news is bad news, a smidgen or minor mention is great news. It's with this small blurb about Academy Award-winning writer, director, and producer, Bobby Moresco changing agents, we find out that he is currently penning a studio project for Universal picture called Humbris - Humbris is another word for arrogance, which is not a label I would employ for the director who is attached to direct the film.

Not to be confused with doc filmmaker Davis Guggenheim, the former Us Weekly editor who probably never paid for a Robert McKee seminar, has had the good fortune of selling Safe House to Universal last month, Los Angeles Times' Steven Zetchik featured the writer, and today Guggenheim, can perhaps put a down payment on a first home as he has sold his second script to Summit Entertainment.

The first role that comes to mind when I think of Barry Pepper is the punishing his character took in The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada. I imagine the casting folk might have referenced that raw performance and might have subconsciously chosen Pepper because he fits the bill and the name.

Looks like won't be the be all and end all for The Duplass brothers, as Jason Reitman's Right of Way Films and John Malkovich's Mr. Mudd have signed on as producers for Mark and Jay Duplass' new project entitled, Jeff Who Lives at Home.

Currently in post-production with The Hereafter, the Warner Bros. thriller that I think has a legitimate shot at a Cannes showing, Clint Eastwood might be turning back the years to another period pic that would would receive the same product value that The Changeling did. The trades report that he is considering making this Dustin Lance Black's penned untitled J.Edgar Hoover biopic as his next project.

I guess this means that the adaptation of Jack Kerouac's On the Road is proving to be more of a perilous project, as Walter Salles appears to be moving onto a Hollywood biopic in the interim.

Now he returns to Zodiac-lite territory with a script that goes the direction of the mystery comedy sub-genre. Aptly titled Murder Mystery, this project reminds me of how much I hated the Clue film. Screen Daily reports that free-range director Kevin MacDonald will direct.

Right at Your Door, Chris Gorak's 2006 low budget debut was essentially his calling card, however, the Sundance film got picked up, but it took a while for Hollywood to place the director in the rolodex. Looks like someone at Regency did just that.