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Are You Ready for Steve Buscemi, Noble Hero?
Buscemi to Portray Non-Weasel: Steve Buscemi joins the cast of John Rabe, about a German businessman (The Lives of Others’ Ulrich Tukur) who saved the lives of more than 200,000 Chinese people during the Nanjing massacre. Buscemi will play Dr. Robert Wilson, an American who remained in Nanjing during the occupation to treat victims. Will audiences accept a Buscemi who doesn’t scamper away in fear? [Variety]
Statham to Choke the Earth in Crap: Jason Statham confirms to MTV News that he will appear in a third Transporter movie as well as a sequel to Crank, which he vows will be more ridiculous than the original. For that to be true, Statham would actually have to drive from theater to theater on opening weekend, having semi-consensual sex with audience members. [MTV]
Wallace Uncovers The Arcanum: Writer-director Randall Wallace (Braveheart, We Were Soldiers) will direct The Arcanum, a fantasy-adventure about a secret society — whose members include Harry Houdini, H.P. Lovecraft, and voodoo princess Marie Laveau — that must battle a supernatural evil. Isn’t this basically League of Extraordinary Gentlemen for even bigger nerds? [Reuters]
For Hardkorn Fans Only: Korn front man Jonathan Davis will embark on a 24-city solo tour, mostly performing Korn songs, covers, and songs from the soundtrack of the long forgotten 2002 film Queen of the Damned. Nonevents don’t get any more noneventful than this. [Billboard]
More Theater Titans Headed for Brooklyn: Brooklyn’s where all the hot Brit action is this winter, as the Brooklyn Academy of Music draws Fiona Shaw, who stars in a production of Beckett’s Happy Days in January, and Patrick Stewart in February as the lead in Macbeth. Jealous borough Manhattan plans to counter by giving Korn front man Jonathan Davis a ten-week stint in Chicago. [Playbill]