Viola Davis Takes Roles In Ender's Game And Beautiful Creatures

viola davis on jimmy kimmel live
(Image credit: ABC)

Today is a big day for the Oscar nominated actresses of Tate Taylor's The Help. Earlier today it was reported that Octavia Spencer - who is up for Best Supporting Actress at this year's Academy Awards - has accepted a role in Bong Joon-ho's Snow Piercer, Jessica Chastain - who also a nominee in the Supporting Actress category - joined Joel Edgerton in The Disappearance of Eleanor Rigby and now we have word that Viola Davis - who is up for Best Actress - has landed two new parts, according to Variety.

First up, Davis has reportedly taken a part in the upcoming adaptation of Orson Scott Card's Ender's Game. The film is being written and directed by Gavin Hood (X-Men Origins: Wolverine) and already has a fantastic cast lined up with Asa Butterfield, Hailee Steinfeld, Abigail Breslin and Harrison Ford signed on. The plot is set in a distant future where aliens have invaded Earth and have begun a war with the humans. To better combat the extraterrestrial forces, the government sets up battle schools to train young super geniuses. The protagonist of the story is the young Ender Wiggen, played by Butterfield. Davis will play a military psychologist who both checks in on the mental health of the trainees and designs the games that they compete in.

The second project is a film called Beautiful Creatures, based on the book by Margaret Stohl and Kami Garcia. That story follows a pair of teenagers, a boy and a girl, who are forced to face the girl's family's curse. Davis plays a librarian who cares for the boy like a son. That film is being written and directed by Richard LaGravenese.

It's amazing what a single fantastic performance and an Best Actress Oscar nomination can do for a career, huh?

Eric Eisenberg
Assistant Managing Editor

Eric Eisenberg is the Assistant Managing Editor at CinemaBlend. After graduating Boston University and earning a bachelor’s degree in journalism, he took a part-time job as a staff writer for CinemaBlend, and after six months was offered the opportunity to move to Los Angeles and take on a newly created West Coast Editor position. Over a decade later, he's continuing to advance his interests and expertise. In addition to conducting filmmaker interviews and contributing to the news and feature content of the site, Eric also oversees the Movie Reviews section, writes the the weekend box office report (published Sundays), and is the site's resident Stephen King expert. He has two King-related columns.