Michael Shannon is putting that Oscar nomination to good use as he surrounds himself with attractive teenage girls for a role in rock chick biopic, The Runaways, about Joan Jett and her illustrious bandmates.

The current line-up includes Twilight's Kristen Stewart (who has just finished making New Moon, which has a new trailer today) as Joan Jett and the not-so-childish-now Dakota Fanning as Bowie-esque lead-singer Cherie Curry. The story will follow their antics as the first big all-girl rock band in the seventies.

Although the main characters will be female, there are a number of lead male roles available, including rock impressario Kim Fowley, who was involved with the band from its inception and doesn't look a million miles away from the intense Shannon.

Shannon - who gained acclaim for his turn as Winslet and Di Caprio's truth-spouting crazy neighbour John Givings in Sam Mendes' Revolutionary Road - is in the middle of shooting Jonah Hex with Josh Brolin and Megan Fox, and is also in 2010's 13, the remake of French thriller 13 (Tzameti), alongside Mickey Rourke and Jason Statham.