Having worked with Sylvester Stallone previously (twice - in Antz and, very briefly, Bananas), it was fun to note that Woody Allen had cast Sly's co-Expendable Bruce Willis in his as-yet untitled next project. Sadly, however, it wasn't to be, as the official line is that Willis has dropped out due to "other commitments".
Those suddenly-remembered commitments are to the not-inconsiderable demands of the Broadway stage, where Willis will be taking the James Caan role in the adaptation of Stephen King's Misery. Deadline beat us to the joke about him being "hobbled" by the project. Respect is due.
He departs a typically eclectic Allen cast that still includes Corey Stoll, Parker Posey, Kristen Stewart, Jesse Eisenberg, Blake Lively, Ken Stott, Anna Camp, Jeannie Berlin, Stephen Kunken, Sari Lennick and Paul Schneider.
Willis had already been spotted on set with Eisenberg, so this is an eleventh-hour departure. But the Allen camp is confident that the Bruce-sized gap won't cause excessive problems and that there's time yet to find his replacement without affecting the schedule.
As to what the film is actually about, as usual with Allen there are no details this early, other than that it's a period piece of some description. Shooting is taking place in California (Allen's first film there since Annie Hall) and New York, and, as we mentioned, is already underway.