Casting : Bichir, del Castillo, Radcliffe, Hamm, Gandolfini, Louis-Dreyfus, Reynolds, Kretschmann, Favreau

Demian Bichir has joined the cast of “Machete Kills” from director Robert Rodriguez; he is also onboard William Friedkin’s “Trapped”, the latter of which goes before the cameras next year.
Bichir, known for his role on TVs “Weeds”, was also up for the role of the villain in “Star Trek 2” (a part that ultimately went to Benedict Cumberbatch). Variety

Mexican Star Kate del Castillo will star opposite Taraji P.Henson and Idris Elba in the Screen Gems thriller about “a former DA-turned-stay-at-home mom (Henson) and her two small children who are kidnapped from their home by a mysterious stranger (Elba).” del Castillo will play Elba’s cheating ex-fiancee. (THR)

Daniel Radcliffe and Jon Hamm are circling a British mini-series about Russian medics during World War I. Radcliffe and Hamm would play the same character; the latter reflecting on his life. The Sun

TV faves James Gandolfini and Julia Louis-Dreyfus are circling a new Nicole Holofcener film from Fox Searchlight. The former “Seinfeld” star will “play the lead, a masseuse who falls in love with the husband of a new friend. Gandolfini will play the husband.” (Deadline)

Thomas Kretschmann, Josie Ho, Joseph Morgan, Erin Richards and Max Wrottesley have joined Sharlto Copley in “Open Graves”, a haunting thriller that “sets six individuals waking up together next to a grave of rotting bodies in the middle of nowhere. None of them know how they got there.” (Deadline)

Burt Reynolds, Joe Piscopo, Paul Sorvino and Erika Christensen are doing the new mafia comedy about a theatre director who enlists the help of the mob to get out of debt and back in the business. Reynolds will play himself. (Variety)

Jon Favreau has nagged an acting role in the new Jason Bateman/Melissa McCarthy comedy “Identity Theft”, about a woman who steals a man’s identity. Favreau, who starred in “Swingers” and “Made”, will play Bateman’s boss. (Variety)