Studios are frantically looking for the next YA novel to bring to the big screen and Summit is hoping that ‘Divergent’ will be their next ‘Twilight Saga.’ With their latest addition of Theo James in the lead role of Four, primary casting seems to now be complete.
James can currently be seen in the CBS series ‘Golden Boy’ as Detective Walter Clark but movie goers may recognize him from the films ‘Underworld: Awakening’, ‘The Inbetweeners Movie’ and in a short but memorable stint in’ Downtown Abby’ as Lady Mary’s lover.
In ‘Divergent,’ James will play Tobias “Four” Eaton, an intense and charismatic man with a mysterious past who not only is Tris’ (Shailene Woodley) instructor but one of the leaders of the Dauntless faction.
In a joint statement, Rob Friedman and Patrick Wachsberger, Co-Chairmen of Lionsgate Motion Picture Group, said, “Theo is not only an incredibly talented actor, he is also who we envisioned as Four when reading Veronica’s novel which has taken the world by storm. As we continue to develop the film, the studio remains committed to providing fans with a movie adaptation that stays as true to the book as possible and we are confident that we have done so with our selection of Shailene and Theo in the leading roles.”
James is one of a long list of actors who have been signed on to star in the film. This week alone, Summit has announced that Maggie Q (who will play Tori, the Dauntless volunteer who is part of the choosing ceremony and discovers that Tris is Divergent), Zoe Kravitz (who will play Christina, the brave Dauntless initiate who buddies up with Tris), Ansel Elgort (who will play Caleb, the brother of Tris who turns his back on his family and becomes part of the Eudite faction), Jai Courtney (the cruel Dauntless leader named Eric), Kate Winslett (who will portray the stern Erudite faction leader Jeanine Matthews), Ray Stevenson (in an unspecified role but many think he’ll be playing some type of father figure), Miles Teller (who will cause much trouble for Tris as a fellow Dauntless initiate named Peter), and Aaron Eckhart (who is also in an unspecified role).
‘Divergent’ has the makings of an excellent franchise and said to be the first of a planned trilogy. The movie is based on the first book by Veronica Roth whose third novel in the series is expected to be released this fall.
Here’s a description of the novel:
DIVERGENT is the story of a dystopian society where every sixteen-year-old must make a choice that will determine the rest of their lives.
In Beatrice Prior’s dystopian Chicago world, society is divided into five factions, each dedicated to the cultivation of a particular virtue—Candor (the honest), Abnegation (the selfless), Dauntless (the brave), Amity (the peaceful), and Erudite (the intelligent). On an appointed day of every year, all sixteen-year-olds must select the faction to which they will devote the rest of their lives. For Beatrice, the decision is between staying with her family and being who she really is—she can’t have both. So she makes a choice that surprises everyone, including herself.
During the highly competitive initiation that follows, Beatrice renames herself Tris and struggles alongside her fellow initiates to live out the choice they have made. Together they must undergo extreme physical tests of endurance and intense psychological simulations, some with devastating consequences. As initiation transforms them all, Tris must determine who her friends really are—and where, exactly, a romance with a sometimes fascinating, sometimes exasperating boy fits into the life she’s chosen. But Tris also has a secret, one she’s kept hidden from everyone because she’s been warned it can mean death. And as she discovers unrest and growing conflict that threaten to unravel her seemingly perfect society, she also learns that her secret might help her save those she loves . . . or it might destroy her.
With the majority of the casting completed, filming should begin soon.
Expect to see ‘Divergent’ in theaters on March 21, 2014.