Principal photography on feature film Filth, written and directed by Jon S. Baird (Cass) is officially announced today. James McAvoy (Arthur Christmas), Jamie Bell (The Adventures of Tintin), Jim Broadbent (The Iron Lady), Eddie Marsan (Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows), and Imogen Poots (Jane Eyre) star.

Shooting the film based on the best-selling novel by Irvine Welsh has commenced in Glasgow, Scotland as well as on location in Sweden, Belgium and Hamburg.

McAvoy plays the leading role of Bruce Robertson, a corrupt Scottish police officer and cocaine addict who has to solve a brutal murder case with an ambitious colleague, mentee-cum-sidekick, Ray Lennox (Bell). Bruce flees from, his sexual endeavors eventually backfiring and his various short or long-termed schemes and plots against his colleagues in order to secure the hoped-for promotion to Detective Inspector.

Poots will be playing Amanda Drummond, a colleague of Bruce’s.

Scottish novelist Irvine Welsh, best known for his novel Trainspotting, also co-wrote a script with Baird. Baird commented:

Filth is filled with irreverent comedy and some extremely surreal moments, but ends with a sharp twist of poignancy. The character of Bruce Robertson has to show such a wide range that it could only take an actor as talented as James McAvoy (pictured) to pull it off with the necessary charm and humanity.

Producer Marshall added:

Bruce Robertson is not only a guilty pleasure, but a character edgier than all the other characters from Irvine Welsh’s works combined. With Filth we have the chance to make a bold and outrageous film that I have no doubt will be unique, darkly funny and ultimately commercial.”

Lionsgate will be releasing Filth.

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The writers of the film Wanted have been rehired to work on the script for a sequel.

Derek Haas and Michael Brandt will rewrite Evan Spiliotopoulos’ screenplay for Wanted 2.

“Wanted 2 is going to take off after the events of what just happened. Pick up Wesley a few years later and go back in for another round,” Haas told TheWrap.

“We just always loved the Wanted world and loved working with Universal and [director] Timur [Bekmambetov] on the first one, so we’re excited.”

Haas said there was no director attached yet, although as you might have guessed from his statement above he’d be happy to work with Bekmambetov again. “But he’s a busy guy,” Haas added.

James McAvoy starred in the 2008 comic-book movie about a lowly office worker who discovers he has unusual abilities that make him the perfect assassin.

The two writers are clearly seen as hitmen themselves by film studio Universal, with the first movie making $341m on a $75m budget.

Will McAvoy return, though?

The actor is filming Trance right now, while his next movie Filth is currently in pre-production and he’s also been named as the favourite to play Elton John in the biopic? Rocketman.

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James McAvoy will be starring in Filth, it has been confirmed.

The Scottish X-Men: First Class star, who will play sex-obsessed, misanthropic police officer Bruce Robertson, is said to be joined by Jamie Bell and Alan Cumming as his partner-of-sorts Ray Lennox and his boss Bob Toal in the big-screen adaptation of Irvine Welsh’s 1998 bestselling novel.

The Scottish author told the Playlist: “James is going to be main character, Jamie is going to be Lennox – his kind of sidekick – and Alan is going to be Toal. That’s going to be the main cast.”

James had previously hinted at a thrilling project on the horizon earlier this year, telling the Daily Record: “I’m looking at a part soon, like the second half of this year, that is quite extreme I mean, quite full on mental.”

Irvine, who will produce the film, also revealed that filming is expected to begin with director Jon S Baird in January 2012.

“Jon did a revised screenplay which was absolutely brilliant,” the author continued.

“I think Jon’s definitely done something really sort of magic. He’s captured and he’s kept the essence of the main protagonist but he’s done a lot of interesting things with it as well. It’s a great script and it’s going to make a great film with that cast attached.”

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Fox has announced that they will release Matthew Vaughn’s X-Men: First Class onto DVD and Blu-ray on September 9th, a mere three months after hit theaters. The film will be offered in two different cases: one features James McAvoy as Professor Charles Xavier and the other has Michael Fassbender as Erik Lensherr aka Magneto. The Blu-ray will include over two hours of special features, a digital copy of the film, ten Marvel X-Men digital comics including a new X-Men: First Class back story.

Read the full specification at Collider!

Yesterday we reported from Variety that James McAvoy was in “early talks” to star in Danny Boyle‘s 127 Hours follow-up, Trance. We’ve just received word straight from Fox Searchlight that he is confirmed to be in talks, but in a different role than his X-Men: First Class co-star Michael Fassbender was previously circling. As for Fassbender’s involvement, they provided no comment. Could a reunion still be in the works after they carried Fox’s recent blockbuster? We don’t have enough to go on, but stay tuned and read our original story below.

Danny Boyle is set to remake Joe Ahearne‘s 2001 British thriller Trance. The modestly budgeted art heist film is being described in the “dark, sexy, hard-edged tone of Boyle films like Shallow Grave and Trainspotting” and we now have an actor in talks to the role, after Michael Fassbender was rumored.

His X-Men: First Class co-star James McAvoy has entered early talks to play the a role, but not the one of Simon. Fassbender was circling that role of “the shady leader of the gang who partners with the assistant.” Check out a synopsis below.

An assistant at an auction house masterminds the heist and teams up with a gang of thieves, but suffers a blow to the head and wakes up with amnesia. He is the only one who knows where the painting’s location is and after his continued failure to remember, the gang begins to suspect duplicity on his part and hire a female hypnotist to get into his brain.

Boyle, and his producing partner Christian Colson, plan a different kind of production schedule. He will have a London shoot this fall, then take a break to direct the opening 2012 Summer Olympics ceremony. He will then return to the film and edit it for a March 2013 release via Fox Searchlight. Many films are on such a tight production schedule, it will be interesting to see what this extended break can help in the formation of the film.

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