Hugh Jackman and Emma Thompson in a "Sheep Detective Movie," Kristen Stewart is Sally Ride, and more casting news

Colman Domingo, Andy Samberg, and Kate McKinnon also locked down roles this week, while Nicholas Braun and Nicholas Galitzine are also joining the sheep movie

By Emma Keates, Mary Kate Carr, Matt Schimkowitz, Saloni Gajjar | June 7, 2024 | 8:21pm

Aux News Sally Ride

L-R: Hugh Jackman; Emma Thompson; Kristen Stewart; Colman Domingo; Andy Samberg Photo: Kevin Mazur/MG24/Getty Images for The Met Museum/Vogue; Stephane Cardinale – Corbis/Corbis; Jon Kopaloff/WireImage; Mike Marsland; Amanda Edwards/FilmMagic (Getty Images)

This week gave us a welcome respite from the endless stream of Knives Out casting news, only to hit us with something much wilder right under the wire. It was announced today that Hugh Jackman would be leading a film called Three Bags Full: A Sheep Detective Movie from Minions: The Rise Of Gru director Kyle Balda, written by The Last Of Us’ Craig Mazin. This movie also stars Emma Thompson, Nicholas Braun, Nicholas Galitzine, and an ensemble that arguably puts Wake Up Dead Man’s to shame. Elsewhere, the Glen Powell rise continues, team Luca Guadagnino grows by two, and the Superman cast just keeps getting bigger. There’s really never a dull week in Hollywood!

Michael Stuhlbarg and Chloë Sevigny reteam with Luca Guadagnino

Everybody wants to work with Luca Guadagnino these days, but none of them have the supporting actor pull that Michael Stuhlbarg does. The duo are embarking on their third collaboration after Call Me By Your Name and Bones And All, as Stuhlbarg boards After The Hunt, per Deadline. He joins an already star-studded cast of Julia Roberts, Ayo Edebiri, and Andrew Garfield. The film is described as “an intense dramatic thriller about a college professor who finds herself at a personal and professional crossroads when a star pupil levels an accusation against one of her colleagues, and a dark secret from her own past threatens to come to light.” [Mary Kate Carr]Also , Chloë Sevigny is also heading back to Guadagnino country. After working with director Luca Guadagnino on Bones & All and We Are We Are, Sevigny will appear in After The Hunt. [Matt Schimkowitz]

Hugh Jackman, Emma Thompson, Nicholas Braun, and more are doing a Sheep Detective Movie

Minions: The Rise Of Gru director Kyle Balda has assembled one of the best and most interesting teams created in the past few months for something called… Three Bags Full: A Sheep Detective Movie. Huh. We’ll try to keep an open mind, because the cast for this is truly excellent. Hugh Jackman will lead the ensemble, which also includes Emma Thompson, Nicholas Braun (Succession), Nicholas Galitzine (The Idea of You), Molly Gordon (Theater Camp), Hong Chau (The Whale), Tosin Cole (Supacell), Kobna Holdbrook-Smith (Wonka), Conleth Hill (Game of Thrones), and Mandeep Dhillon (Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker). If that isn’t crazy enough, the live-action comedy was also scripted by The Last Of Us’ Craig Mazin. Based on the novel by Leonie Swann, the story follow (per Deadline) “George Hardy (Jackman), a shepherd who loves his sheep and raises them only for their wool. Every night he reads aloud a murder mystery, pretending his sheep can understand, never suspecting that not only can they understand but they argue for hours afterwards about whodunnit.” [Emma Keates]

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Colman Domingo joins Tina Fey/Steve Carell comedy series

Fresh off his Oscar nomination, Colman Domingo has joined the new high-profile Tina Fey series Four Seasons, according to . The show is based on the 1981 film of the same name about a group of married couples who vacation together every year until one of the husbands leaves his wife and brings a younger woman along on the trip. Fey co-created the series with Lang Fisher and Tracey Wigfield, and will also star alongside Domingo and Steve Carell. [Mary Kate Carr]

Elle Fanning is now part of the Predator cinematic universe

The Predator franchise continues to expand with a new standalone feature, Badlands, which is set to star Emmy nominee Elle Fanning, per . There are few details of the film beyond the involvement of Fanning (a reported Predator fan) and Dan Trachtenberg, who will direct from a script he co-wrote with Patrick Aison. 20th Century Studios previously had success with the Predator spin-off Prey, which broke records streaming on Hulu. [Mary Kate Carr]

Sarah Snook sets next series on Peacock

Hot off of her Emmy- and Golden Globe-winning performance for Succession and a critically acclaimed theatrical run for The Picture Of Dorian Gray, Sarah Snook has set her next series at Peacock. Per , she’ll lead the new “suburban thriller” All Her Fault. Snook will play Marissa Irvine, who “arrives at 14 Arthur Avenue, expecting to pick up her young son Milo from his first playdate with a boy at his new school. But the woman who answers the door isn’t a mother she recognizes. She isn’t the nanny. She doesn’t have Milo. And so begins every parent’s worst nightmare.” [Mary Kate Carr]

Sarah Gadon cast in Mae Martin’s next series

Sarah Gadon (Alias Grace, Ferrari) has been cast in the new Canadian limited series Wayward, originally titled Tall Pines. The eight-episode thriller series was created by comedian Mae Martin and, per , “bucolic but sinister town that explores the insidious underbelly of the ‘troubled teen industry’ and the eternal struggle between one generation and the next.” Gadon will reportedly play the “supportive yet independent partner” of Martin’s character. [Mary Kate Carr]

Kelsey Grammer’s daughter is joining her dad on Frasier

Frasier is becoming a family affair. Kelsey Grammer’s daughter Greer Grammer has joined the cast of the revival for its second season. Rather than being her father’s daughter, Greer will play Alice, the daughter of Roz (Peri Gilpin). Per , Alice “has inherited more than some of her mother’s free-spirited ways. Having just moved to Providence to study architecture, Alice is eager to catch up with Frasier’s son Freddy (Jack Cutmore-Scott)—and complicate whatever romantic plans he may have.” Patricia Heaton of Everybody Loves Raymond has also signed on for the second season, reuniting with Kelsey after their short-lived 2007 sitcom Back To You. Heaton will play Holly, “a down-to-earth Boston bartender, whose confident and unpretentious nature puts her at odds with Grammer’s character’s aspirational academic ideals,” per . [Mary Kate Carr]

Corey Stoll and Bobby Naderi join The Better Sister

Corey Stoll and Bobby Naderi are going to figure out who is The Better Sister, Prime Videos’ upcoming thriller series based on Alafair Burke’s novel. Stoll will play Adam, a small-town boy who is now a big-city lawyer but is worried that all this money won’t be good for his son. Naderi stars as Matt Bowen, who is investigating Adam’s murder, . The series also stars Jessica Biel and Elizabeth Banks. [Matt Schimkowitz]

Hamish Linklater joins Gen V

Hamish Linklater has been accepted to Godolkin University and will join Gen V. , Linklater, best known for roles on Manhunt, Gaslit, and Midnight Mass, will play Cipher, “the charismatic and charming newly-appointed Dean of Godolkin University. Trained as a scientist, he’s politically brilliant and has the trust and admiration of officials at the highest level.” Let’s just hope the boys over at Chugalug House don’t get to him first before The Boys do. [Matt Schimkowitz]

Andy Samberg and Kate McKinnon to do battle in The Roses

Andy Samberg and Kate McKinnon are joining Oliva Coleman and Benedict Cumberbatch in Jay Roach’s upcoming “reimagining” of The War Of The Roses, simply titled The Roses. Presumably, they joined after writer Tony McNamara Sean Parkered the title (cut “The War Of” it’s cleaner.) Roach has amassed quite a cast, according to , bringing in Ncuti Gatwa, Sunita Mani, Zoë Chao, Jamie Demetriou, and Belinda Bromilow for a little battle of the sexes. [Matt Schimkowitz]

Anjelica Huston boards BBC’s next Agatha Christie adaptation

Agatha Christie’s Towards Zero is getting the TV show treatment on the BBC. The previously announced cast includes Emmy winner Matthew Rhys, Oliver Jackson-Cohen, Ella Lily Hyland, Anjana Vasan, Grace Doherty, Mimi Keene, and Jackie Clune. But now they’re blessed with the presence of Anjelica Huston. She’ll play Lady Tressilian, whose coastal estate residence is upended by the arrival of her tennis star nephew and his wife. [Saloni Gajjar]

Tyler Perry’s next film has an impressive ensemble

If there’s one thing you’ll find in a Tyler Perry movie, no matter how wacky it is, it’s talented actors going all out in service of the script. For his next film Straws, Perry has added Taraji P. Henson, Sherri Shepherd, Teyana Taylor, Glynn Turman, and Mike Merrill to the lineup. Straws is more serious drama, though, following a single mother struggling to overcome adversity when she gets entangled in a tough situation. [Saloni Gajjar]

Hunger Games star Tom Blyth finds his next role

Tom Blyth is going from Hunger Games to video games with his next gig. The actor is set to star opposite Talk To Me’s Sophie Wilde in Watch Dogs, which starts production this summer, . The film is inspired by Ubisoft’s video game series and is set in a world where hackers rebel against and fight injustice through a digital information system. French director Matthieu Turi is set to helm the project. [Saloni Gajjar]

Steve Zahn teams up with Glen Powell for Hulu

Glen Powell’s domination of the screen continues with an upcoming Hulu series called Chad Powers. He’ll be joined by The White Lotus’ Steve Zahn, according to Deadline. (Let’s see what kind of news stories flare up about their chemistry, shall we?). Co-created by Powell and Loki’s Michael Waldron, the series is about a popular quarterback whose career ends due to bad behavior. He disguises himself as an affable Chad Powers to join another team. Zahn plays the head coach of a college football program and gives Chad a last shot at fame. [Saloni Gajjar]

Marion Cotillard joins The Morning Show

Seeing as Hollywood has been unsuccessful at providing Marion Cotillard with a decent role in the decade since she came stateside, the actor is heading to The Morning Show. The Oscar-winner will play “a savvy operator from a storied European family” named Celine Dumont, , which is a pretty good name for a character played by Cotillard. [Matt Schimkowitz]

Beck Bennett joins James Gunn’s Superman

In an effort to outpace Knives Out III’s overwhelming number of casting announcements, James Gunn’s Superman is doing everything under the yellow sun to keep its name in the trades. As such, the Man of Steel’s latest adventure will feature former SNL cast member Beck Bennett into the Fortress of Solitude. Who’s he going to play? It’s a secret, so we’ll just guess that he’s playing a character with the best name in the DC universe. [Matt Schimkowitz]

Rachel Sennott starts casting her comedy pilot

Rachel Sennott is building out the cast for her HBO comedy pilot, which was . While the Bottoms and Shiva Baby star will lead the ensemble, the series has added Odessa A’zion (Grand Army), Jordan Firstman (Rotting in the Sun), Miles Robbins (Blockers), and True Whitaker (Godfather of Harlem). The show does not have a title yet, but shared its official logline this week: “A codependent friend group reunites, navigating how the time apart, ambition, and new relationships have changed them.” [Emma Keates]

Jensen Ackles joins new Prime Video thriller

Jensen Ackles is breaking away from the Eric Kripke-verse. The Supernatural and The Boys alum is set to lead Countdown, a new Prime Video thriller from Derek Haas (One Chicago). Here’s a summary, from Deadline: “Countdown starts following a suspicious murder in broad daylight, which leads to LAPD officer Mark Meachum (Ackles) being recruited to join a secret task force of undercover agents from all branches of law enforcement to investigate. But as the truth of a more sinister plot comes into focus, the team must overcome their conflicting personal agendas to unite and save a city of millions.” [Emma Keates]

James Van Der Beek is doing a Wattpad show

Fan fiction projects are coming fast and furious after The Idea Of You. This week, it was announced that James Van Der Beek would be starring in Sidelined: The QB And Me, a Tubi original based on a popular Wattpad story (one with over 31 million reads?!) called The QB Bad Boy and Me by Tay Marley. Siena Agudong, Noah Beck, Drew Ray Tanner, (Station Eleven), and (Allegiance) have also been cast. According to , the story follows Dallas (Agudong), “a burdened but headstrong dancer, who is determined to get into the best dance school in the country—her late mother’s alma mater. However, that dream is suddenly derailed when the cheeky yet secretly grieving football star, Drayton (Beck), crashes into her life with a unique story of his own.” Van Der Beek will play Drayton’s “tough but well-meaning father,” Leroy. [Emma Keates]

Murray Bartlett will star opposite Amy Adams At The Sea

The White Lotus’ Murray Bartlett is going back to the ocean—hopefully it works out a little better for him this time! The Emmy Award-winning actor will join Amy Adams in Kornel Mundruczó and Kata Wéber At The Sea, an upcoming drama film. Per Deadline, the film’s synopsis reads as follows: “Set to enter production in Boston in June, the film follows the life of Laura (Adams) after a long rehabilitation, as she returns to her family at their beach holiday home where she has to readjust to the complicated life she left behind. Now she is forced to face the following next chapter of her life without the career that gave her fame, fortune and, most importantly, identity. Bartlett will play Adams’ husband.” [Emma Keates]

Kristen Stewart will blast off as Sally Ride

Kristen Stewart has come a long way from her vampiric origins. Soon, she’ll be far away from Earth altogether in her role as Sally Ride, the first American woman to fly to space. She stars in the limited series Challenger (not to be confused with Luca Guadagnino’s Challengers), from writer and showrunner Maggie Cohn (American Crime Story, The Staircase). Stewart will executive produce, alongside Kyra Sedgwick’s Big Swing Productions and Steven Spielberg’s Amblin Partners. [Emma Keates]