The major pieces are in place for director Daniel Espinosa’s adaptation of the Soviet-era novel Child 44. The Dark Knight Rises and Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy co-stars Tom Hardy and Gary Oldman nabbed leading roles a while ago. Prometheus star Noomi Rapace is playing the female lead. And while it turns out that Joel Kinnaman will not participate as was rumored). now we’re hearing about character actors landing supporting roles, meaning the production is likely getting ready to kick into high gear.
The Wrap says that Paddy Considine (Tyrannosaur, The World’s End) and Swedish actor Fares Fares (Zero Dark Thirty) have been cast in the Child 44 ensemble. While it is being revealed that Fares will play one of Hardy’s allies in the picture, Considine’s role is being kept under wraps for the time being.
The plot, based on Tom Rob Smith’s 2008 novel, follows a disgraced MGB agent named Leo Demidov (Hardy), who investigates a series of brutal killings in the Soviet Union, back when the country was still under Joseph Stalin’s rule. The book is the first in a trilogy, meaning the studio could easily plan adaptations of The Secret Speech and Agent 6 as sequels if this first movie catches on.
Espinosa recently directed Safe House with Ryan Reynolds and Denzel Washington, and previously helmed Easy Money with Kinnaman in 2010. He’ll aim to get Child 44 in theaters in 2014, with Sir Ridley Scott shepherding the project along as a producer. Truthfully, I would be slightly more excited if Scott were directing this material - it’s right in his wheelhouse. But the cast is great, the premise is solid, and we’ll see how Child 44 shapes up.
