Cate Blanchett Up For A Wicked Role In Disney's Live Action Cinderella Feature

Cate Blanchett in Lord of the Rings
(Image credit: Warner Bros.)

Lord of the Rings fans will see Cate Blanchett returned to her role as Galadriel for upcoming Hobbit trilogy. The three-film adaptation of J.R.R. Tolkien's classic book is just one of a number of projects the Australian actress has in the works. And she may be adding Disney's live-action Cinderella film to the list.

We learned back in 2010 that Disney was planning a live-action re-imagining of Cinderella, with a script written by The Devil Wears Prada's Aline Bosh McKenna, which was later rewritten by About A Boy's Chris Weitz. Mark Romenek is expected to direct the feature, but there hasn't been much in the way of casting news since the project was announced. Today, Deadline reports that Cate Blanchett is in "deep talks" to join the project, playing the iconic role of the villainous wicked stepmother (Lady Tremaine).

Thoughts of Blanchett as the wicked stepmother combined with anticipating her appearance in The Hobbit inspires a flashback of Galadriel's "All shall love me and despair" moment from Fellowship of the Ring. It's doubtful that the wicked stepmother will get all huge and glowy, but at the very least, we know Blanchett knows how to play up the scary when she needs to. It doesn't sound like she's confirmed for the part just yet, but this is the first big piece of casting news for the project and it would certainly be a step in the right direction for the film.

Kelly West
Assistant Managing Editor

Kelly joined CinemaBlend as a freelance TV news writer in 2006 and went on to serve as the site’s TV Editor before moving over to other roles on the site. At present, she’s an Assistant Managing Editor who spends much of her time brainstorming and editing feature content on the site. She an expert in all things Harry Potter, books from a variety of genres (sci-fi, mystery, horror, YA, drama, romance -- anything with a great story and interesting characters.), watching Big Brother, frequently rewatching The Office, listening to Taylor Swift, and playing The Sims.