Another day, another round of casting news; Nicolas Cage is taking a break from appearing on Beyonce Superbowl themed memes (and all manner of cat related memes) to star in a new thriller called Tokarev. Deadline report that Cage will take on the role of Paul Maguire, a former crook who sets out to track down his daughter's kidnappers whilst trying to avoid falling back into his past.
Elsewhere Ralph Fiennes (Skyfall, The English Patient, erm, Vodelmort from Harry Potter) is in advance talks to star in James Foley's fantasy flick, Sands. From a script by Renata Bovara, Sands centres around a married couple who find themselves involved in a car accident, the effects of which leave the woman in a coma. As for the fantasy bit, her spirit then wanders over to India where she falls head over heels for an imaginary man. Then, she must choose between this new life in India or to return to her original life with her husband in New York. That's certainly a plotline to pique our interest, once it doesn't veer into Nicholas Sparks territory. We don't know yet what role Fiennes would play, what we do know, however, is that production is due to begin towards the end of 2013.
Though it's not casting news, it's still relevant; Marvel's next big blockbuster project Guardians of the Galaxy will begin shooting in June. Production has already began, reveals VP of Visual Effects at Marvel Victoria Alonso. Directed by James Gunn, this flick centres on a futuristic team of superheroes whose duty it is to protect the galaxy from danger. Chris Pratt (Zero Dark Thirty, The Five Year Engagement) takes on his first starring role here as Star-Lord. No other names have yet to be set in stone.