Snabba Dabba Doo: Zac Efron will star in a remake of Snabba Cash, a film for Warner Bros. that the teen royal will also produce. Snabba, based on a novel by Jens Lapidus, was a hit film in Sweden this year, and the project set off a bidding war among the Hollywood studios. It follows three story lines involving drugs and organized crime; Efron will play a young man who aims for a large payoff by becoming a runner for a coke dealer. Things get awkward, though, when the dealer has to wait for his runner to finish a cheesy love ballad sung to the camera before unloading his stash. [HR]
Weisz Takes On Jackie: Darren Aronofsky and Rachel Weisz are attached to Jackie, a film written by TV producer Noah Oppenheim that will follow Jackie Kennedy in the days after the assassination of JFK. Though the film is still in need of financing, the announcement of the real-life couple’s involvement means Weisz is probably safe going on a celebratory pillbox-hat shopping spree this weekend. [Deadline]
Ultimate Frisbey: Astrid Berges-Frisbey, a Barcelona-born French actress, has been cast in the upcoming Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides as the mermaid Syrena. It is unclear whether she was subject to the Pirates “screening process†for actresses leaked earlier this month. [Variety]
Ultimate Frisbey: Astrid Berges-Frisbey, a Barcelona-born French actress, has been cast in the upcoming Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides as the mermaid Syrena. It is unclear whether she was subject to the Pirates “screening process†for actresses leaked earlier this month. [Variety]
Fletcher In for Kreuk: In a last-minute switch, Sara Fletcher will replace Kristin Kreuk (Smallville, Chuck) as the female lead in Josh Schwartz’s CBS comedy pilot Hitched, about a newlywed couple. Kreuk is probably not used to situations in which Clark Kent doesn’t arrive in the nick of time to rescue her. [Deadline]
Mouse on the Loose: Modest Mouse will tour the U.S. this summer, heading out at the beginning of July, before jumping overseas for the festival circuit in the U.K. and Ireland. Good news for people who love Modest Mouse tour news. [Pitchfork]
Forbes Arrives at Killing: AMC has added Michelle Forbes (True Blood’s Maryann) as a regular on its upcoming drama pilot Killing, about the police investigation of a girl’s murder. Forbes will play the victim’s mom. Whatever you do, everyone else on the show, do not eat this woman’s soufflé. [HR]
Strange But True: Bill Haber and Tina Brown have optioned In a Strange City, the sixth novel from author Laura Lippman featuring the character Tess Monaghan, a Baltimore investigative journalist who becomes a private eye. Jay Cocks (Gangs of New York) will write the adaptation. Yes, this is happening before a Veronica Mars movie. [Variety]