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Oscar winner Colin Firth, comedy champ Adam Sandler and Looper star Emily Blunt are set to join Charlize Theron in Murder Mystery, a comedy whodunit which John Madden, the British helmer of The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel and Shakespeare in Love, is attached to direct, according to a German state body backing the project.
The NRW Filmstifftung, Germany‘s largest regional film funding body, made the casting announcement early Friday, saying it would co-finance the project to the tune of around $1 million. A few hours later, NRW retracted its announcement and took Murder Mystery off its announcement of new funded projects.
CAA, which represents both Firth and Blunt, says the actors are not involved in any way with the project.
The plot of the Murder Mystery, from a script by White House Down writer James Vanderbilt, has a pair of American newlyweds visiting Europe on their honeymoon who get implicated in a murder they witnessed.
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Endgame Entertainment and Tower Hill are behind the project, which had originally been set up at Disney and which Tower Hill picked up in turnaround. Kevin McDonald had initially been attached as director.
Theron would also produce Murder Mystery via her Denver and Delilah Productions shingle, joining Endgame’s James D. Stern and Tower Hill’s William Shively together with Tripp Vinson, Beau Flynn and Vanderbilt.
STORY: Charlize Theron in Talks to Star in ‘Murder Mystery’ for ‘Marigold Hotel’ Director
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