Casting Rumor: Into the Woods

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From past conversations right here, I’ve been delighted to discover that many of you are fairytale fans. Yay! What fun to be a part of such a diverse and entertaining fan club. This news is for all of you! You will all remember we’ve been chatting about the upcoming live-action version of Cinderella which has confirmed casting, now Disney is producing/releasing another adaptation of Cinderella, only… this one has a twist! Not only will Cinderella be among the familiar players, there will be a plethora of iconic protagonists and antagonists; we’ll also see Rapunzel, Little Red Riding Hood and characters from Jack and the Beanstalk. This one sounds like it will have a “new” twist and the cast ranges from veteran stars to new kids on the block.  

CASTING RUMOR: INTO THE WOODS

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Casting Rumor: Into the Woods. Talking the rumors of casting for Disney's Into the Woods musical. All text is © Rissi JC

According to Hollywood Life, Variety and several other sources, Anna Kendrick (best known for her role in Pitch Perfect) is in talks to take the role of Cinderella as well as multiple other talented actors being either “in talks” to take roles or already having taken then (including Chris Pine – pictured below – as “Rapunzel’s Prince.” Yes, please!). Slated also to be a musical (the
stories roots are from Broadway), this could be very, very good. Reading this Internet story from Yahoo, here is what we know:   Anna Kendrick is in talks for a coveted role. According to Variety, the “Pitch Perfect” star, 27, is being considered to play Cinderella in Disney’s upcoming musical, “Into the Woods.”  

Johnny Depp, Meryl Streep and Emily Blunt have inked deals to star in the film, a big screen adaptation of Stephen Sondheim’s 1987 Broadway hit, while Chris Pine, Jake Gyllenhaal and more are reportedly in various stages of negotiations to sign on.   “Into the Woods” is slated for release on Christmas Day, 2014, and will be directed by Rob Marshall (“Chicago,” “Nine”). Here are some other actors in the film and their respective roles:  

  • Jake Gyllenhall – Cinderella’s Prince
  • Christine Baranski – Cinderella’s Stepmother (rumored)    
  • Meryl Streep – the Witch  
  • Johnny Depp – the Wolf  
  • James Corden – the Baker  

Once rumored for this role were: Matthew Broderick, Colin Firth, Johnny Depp, Denis O’Hare and Jim Carrey  

  • Emily Blunt – the Bakers Wife    

…and as always, I’d love to know what you all think! Share any opinions or thoughts below in the comment section.

About Rissi JC

amateur graphic designer. confirmed bookaholic. bubbl’r enthusiast. critical thinker. miswesterner. social media coordinator. writer.

35 comments

  1. I didn't realize they were making this musical! This could be fun — can Chris Pine sing???

    Anna Kendrick is lovely. She's one of the Twilight girls.

    1. Good question! Can he sing…? Hmm, we'll hope for the best.

      Totally forgot Anna was in Twilight. Obviously there is strategy to all casting – even though she didn't play Bella, I'd bet she had a fan base because of those films. :)

    1. Johnny Depp is hilarious, Bluerose! He may play the same general character too often but… I have to admit, he does it well. :)

    1. Haven't seen either one of those movies, Mette, however having read reviews on them, I don't find that hard to believe. We'll hope for the best once 'Into the Woods' starts playing on the big screen. :)

  2. While I'm not that familiar with Into the Woods, I've heard some songs and read the play summary before. So it's pretty exciting to hear that they're turning it into a film. The producers are spoiling us with so many fairy tale-to-big screen announcements. Not that I mind!

    1. You're telling me, Jemimah! How exciting is this!?

      I'm not familiar with this as a Broadway show either but it sounds awesome as a movie. Here's hoping it is. :)

  3. A fairy-tale musical with great casting?! Yes!!! This could be awesome. Oh, and I completely approve of Gyllenhall and Pine as princely heroes (granted, as Charity said, they have decent singing abilities that I don't know about). ;-)

    1. That's the real cause to be nervous, Tayler: can all of these stars sing? I know Anna can as does Christine but… the rest is up in the air.

      Hopefully if they can't, their acting talent will make up for the rest. :)

      As always, delighted you stopped by.

  4. I can't even begin to tell you how happy this makes me feel. So stinkin' happy!! Me? Fairy-tales? Musicals? Chris Pine? You know it. :)

    I echo the same as some of the others, it will be interesting to see if some of those characters can sing, since I've never heard a tune from their lips before. But I'm sure the directors/casting people have put that into consideration. :)

    But I'm still quite ready to overlook at off-key notes if those off-key note are coming from the vocal cords of ones such as Pine and Gyllenhal.

    And whereas I haven't seen Pitch Perfect (or Twilight, for that matter), from what I've seen of Anna Kendrick, she fits the bill for Cinderella as far as my opinion goes. :)

    Now I just have to wait until the end of next year. So, I'm wondering – does the fairy-tale remake trends correspond with whatever Disney Princess is being released from the Disney vault? I mean, there's several renditions of Cinderella coming out now, and Cinderella was just released. Which makes me wonder…I think Little Mermaid is coming out next. Next year or so will we see an influx of Little Mermaid themed movies? :) I'd be okay with that, as long as they remembered to at least keep the sea-shells in place. ;)

    1. Me too, Kellie – we'll be happy together. Fairy-tales, Chris Pine and romance? Um, yes, I think that's a combination that could work. ;)

      Let's hope so! Sometimes, the producers/director look more at name recognition than talent. Anna and Christine can sing. Beyond that… I am clueless since I haven't seen them in movies.

      But I'm still quite ready to overlook at off-key notes if those off-key note are coming from the vocal cords of ones such as Pine and Gyllenhal.

      For sure! Who wouldn't!? ;)

      Anna is a lovely actress. Not interested in Twilight to be honest however she was cute and sassy in Pitch Perfect. (Unfortunately the movie was full of crude humor and that was off-putting.)

      Ooo! Seeing a Little Mermaid re-make will be delightful! Not really sure why there are so many Cinderella themed fairytales now. Someone did once tell me that a script is shopped around at the same time and studios decide whether or not to option it. An example being the multiple versions of Snow White last year. Universal and Relativity Media both had an adaptation out plus Snow is prominently featured on 'Once Upon a Time,' but each put a "different" spin on story. Perhaps that's what will happen this year. Anyway, I am perfectly fine with this trend – and please, let's hope costume designers do the right thing on any 'Little Mermaid' films. If not… things could get awkward. ;)

  5. I was so incredibly excited when I head they were making this into a movie! I found a copy of the show, with Bernadette Peters as the witch and instantly fell in love!
    I knew about all the casting so far but Anna Kendrick, I just rewatched Pitch Perfect last night and fell in love with her voice again and can't wait to see her in another musical role!!
    I have to agree with Kelli, I am rather curious how well some of these folks can sing, and may be willing to overlook a few bad notes if the face pretty enough…..just sayin! ;-)

    1. Yay! Glad you saw the 90's show/movie and liked the story, KatySue. I'm unfamiliar with it but think it sounds really fun. Let's hope, we aren't disappointed. :)

      Anna is great in Pitch Perfect. That solo and when she sings 'Titanium' were both memorable. Seeing her take on another musical role would be fun so I hope she gets the role. I guess in the initial reading of the script, she did play Cinderella so… there's a good sign!

      You, Kellie and I agree; if I like the actor, I'll overlook some bad notes. ;)

      The photo in the header is of Katie Cassidy and Stephan Amell who star in the CW show Arrow. I still liked my last header but… this photo was TOO cute. Couldn't resist. :)

    1. Isn't it just, Hannah!? Terribly excited for this new Disney production, much like I am for the new Cinderella movie. Hoping both are good. :)

      Thank you for the compliment – means a lot, and for your support of this blog.

    1. So am I, Carlyn. It sort of makes me giddy since I've been a fairytale fan since I was a little girl. One thing is for sure, I won't get tired of all these new adaptations. There's so much creativity to be found in these stories. :)

  6. As we talked about this on Twitter…..YOU KNOW I SO PREFER THIS ONE to that other Cinderella.

    Seriously, Meryl Streep? Emily Blunt? Anna Kendrick? YAY!!!

    AND PLEASE CHRIS PINE!!

    1. Yes – and what an impressive cast it is, Ella! So long as they have good writers to help the characters grow, this one could be grand.

      Love those three ladies you mention – and Chris Pine? That HAS to happen. ;)

  7. I saw this on twitter and was so happy! I really hope most of those "rumored" and "in talks" actually happen. If they do, that would be one awesome cast! *fingers crossed* ;)

    1. Twitter rules, right!? ;)

      Me too! Delighted to see all of these spectacular fairy-tale adaptations. Methinks producers should keep it coming. Please and thank you.

      It would be a great cast – so much talent.

    1. Thanks, Kellie! Really want to tweak it a bit still (the fonts and size) but… I like the concept. A lot! Thanks for reminding me how much. :)

      Yours is so pretty and girly – love that! Your best one yet.

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