Liam Neeson may have passed on Steven Spielberg's biopic of America's sixteenth president (he says he's now too old for the role), but the rather different Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter** is currently one of the most coveted roles in Hollywood. Screen tests are about to get under way, with a host of familiar and not-so-familiar faces preparing to try out under the beard. We're guessing historical accuracy isn't the order of the day, so Neeson might actually fit quite well here. But he'd face some stiff competition.
There's Adrian Brody, who's done a share of both serious thesping (The Pianist) and comic-book action (Predators). Ditto Timothy Olyphant, who owned Deadwood and wasn't responsible for the road accident that was Hitman. Benjamin Walker is a bit of an unknown, although he had a role in Clint Eastwood's Flags of Our Fathers, turned up as the young Neeson in Kinsey, and played seventh president Andrew Jackson in an acclaimed Broadway rock opera.
Oliver Jackson Cohen is clearly attracting some attention in the upcoming The Raven, and was previously in the BBC's Lark Rise to Candleford. Josh Lucas has a string of genre action roles under his belt (Hulk, Stealth, Poseidon). And James D'Arcy, after small roles in films like Master and Commander and Exorcist: The Beginning, has clearly developed a taste for star parts, following his lead in the upcoming British prison drama Screwed.
An eclectic list then, and one that doesn't include Eric Bana, linked to the role by some sources last month. Has he passed, or is the decision still pending?
Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter is the brainchild of Seth Grahame-Smith (Pride and Prejudice and Zombies). His screenplay is based on his own novel, written in diary form, which relates how Lincoln ascended to the White House as an axe-wielding ninja, sworn to vanquish the undead after his mother's demise at their rotting hands. Some sources are claiming that Tom Hardy has already been cast as Lincoln's Van Helsing-like mentor Henry Sturges.
The 3D film is being set up at Fox, after an energetic auction, with Tim Burton and Timur Bekmambetov producing. Bekmambetov is also set to take his station behind the camera, and the release is pencilled in for December 2012, meaning that casting decision should be made soon... Place your bets below.