Two gorgeous actresses have been cast in Danny Boyle’s new film that’s about a mountain climber pinned beneath a boulder? Wait, that doesn’t make sense. We’ll explain later. THR has announced that Kate Mara (last seen in Shooter and the Sundance hit HTYMP) is the latest actress to join the cast of Danny Boyle’s 127 Hours starring James Franco as mountain climber Aron Ralston who had to amputate his own arm after being trapped for five days in Utah. We also mentioned a few days ago that Amber Tamblyn had been cast in this as well. But how do these two actresses fit into what’s supposed to be a one-man show (like Buried)?

THR says that “Mara and Tamblyn play hikers he meets before his ordeal.” But in Deadline’s article about Tamblyn, they say she “will play his girlfriend, with their relationship played out in flashbacks that keep him going.” Who is right? Or is Tamblyn playing a girl on a hike and his girlfriend? I don’t know enough about the real story to say one way or another, but this is some big name (and beautiful) casting for two roles that may not have much screentime. We’ve heard that 127 Hours might have something like 60 minutes without dialogue, which is why Boyle needs actresses like this to spice up the cast. Shooting starts in early March.

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That’s a Casting Tidbits bingo! First, Deadline Hollywood is reporting that Cate Blanchett will join the recently cast Eric Bana in Hanna, the Saoirse Ronan driven film from Joe Wright which tells the story of a 14-year-old Eastern European girl saved from a CIA breeding camp and raised to be a cold-blooded killing machine. After finding peace with a French family, the girl is dragged back to her father’s world, and she must fight her way to a free life. No word on exactly what character Blanchett will be playing, but I imagine she will be the mother of the French family Hanna makes her life with after escaping. More casting ahead!

In addition, that same Deadline article announces Amber Tamblyn will play the female lead opposite James Franco in Danny Boyle’s next film 127 Hours. The drama centers on Aron Ralston, the mountain climber who cut off his arm with a dull knife to save his life after being unable to free the limb from under a boulder. Tamblyn will play his girlfriend, with their relationship played out in flashbacks that keep him going. Sounds a little too familiar of a formula as that flashback concept has been used countless times before, especially by Danny Boyle in Slumdog Millionaire. Still though, Franco and Boyle together is sure to turn some head, and I’m sure this won’t just be a re-tread of similar stories.

Next, Variety announces that Rachel Weisz is on board to join Daniel Craig and Naomi Watts in the Jim Sheridan directed thriller Dream House. The script from David Loucka which centers on a successful publisher (Craig) who quits his New York City job and relocates his wife (Weisz) and two daughters to a quaint New England town, only to discover that their perfect new home was the murder scene of a mother and her two children. Meanwhile Watts is playing a neighbor who was close to the murdered family.

Also, Variety reports that Katherine Heigl will star in One for the Money, a project that once had Reese Witherspoon attached until its slow development left her uninterested. However, Heigl’s newfound interest in the project has reinvigorated the property which is an adaptation of the Janet Evanovich novel of the same name which is the first of 15 novels to feature character Stephanie Plum, an unemployed lingerie buyer who becomes a bounty hunter to make ends meet. What the hell is a lingerie buyer? Karen McCullah Lutz and Kirsten Smith wrote the script which still needs a director to helm it. Let’s hope they don’t find one.

Finally, Cameron Diaz finally has her nemesis for the upcoming raunchy comedy Bad Teacher as THR reports that Lucy Punch will play Amy Squirrel, a model teacher who comes into conflict with Diaz’s foul-mouthed, conniving seventh-grade teacher character who pursues a new colleague after being dumped by her sugar daddy. This is supposed to be an R-rated, sex comedy, so there should be plenty of laughs in store. We’re still waiting to hear who this new colleague is who brings these women to battle so fiercely. Word on the street is it could be Bradley Cooper or Jason Siegel, but we’ll just have to wait and see.

That’s all for this edition of Casting Tidbits! Be sure to stay tuned for more casting updates on the way!

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The super intense high-speed action flick Drive Angry 3-D already has Nicolas Cage behind the wheel of Patrick Lussier’s next directing gig, but now Collider and Bloody Disgusting have confirmed that William Fichtner (The Dark Knight, Blades of Glory) and Amber Heard (Zombieland, Pineapple Express) have joined the cast as well. The story centers on a man driven by rage who is chasing the people who killed his daughter and kidnapped her baby. The vendetta spins out of control as the chase gets bloodier by the mile, leaving bodies strewn along the highway. Now that’s what I call a revenge flick – this sounds so awesome!

Of course Lussier is no stranger to using 3-D for bloody messes after directing My Bloody Valentine in 3-D and getting some sort of a start on the since halted production of Halloween 3-D. But with Cage on board, continuing his trend of interesting roles, this should be one wild ride. Maybe this will have the grindhouse edge that I felt was lacking from Quentin Tarantino’s Death Proof. It certainly has the right idea. No doubt Heard’s sexy demeanor will be a fine addition along with Fichtner’s intensity. Hopefully Lussier and Todd Farmer (who also wrote My Bloody Valentine) have crafted a decent enough script for these actors to shine.

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