Showbiz411

Wes Anderson–riding on a high with “Moonrise Kingdom”–is casting his 8th movie. A website called Twitch.com says offers have gone out to and eclectic crowd that includes Bill Murray, naturally, and Johnny Depp, Owen Wilson,  Edward Norton, Jude Law, Jeff Goldblum, Adrien Brody, Willem Dafoe and Angela Lansbury. Yes, Angela Lansbury. Who knows how much of this is true? But one thing’s for certain. They’re looking this week for a “young Arab/Middle Eastern male aged 16-21 who is intelligent, charming, and lively. No Experience needed.” That’s from the casting sheet. “Moonrise” has been a hit for Focus, so we can pretty much assume they’ll be back in the game on this one, too.

Roger Friedman

Roger Friedman began his Showbiz411 column in April 2009 after 10 years with Fox News. Friedman previously wrote the Intelligencer column at New York Magazine, He writes for Parade magazine and has written for Details, Vogue, the New York Times, Post, and Daily News and many other publications. He is the writer and co-producer of a film about R&B Music called “Only the Strong Survive,” which was released by Miramax in 2003 and was a selection of the Cannes, Sundance, and Telluride Film festivals.