Get your “Ewan grabs his gun, eh?” Carry On-style puns out of the way, because the casting wheel has spun again on troubled Western drama Jane Got A Gun. After a search that included an attempt to secure Bradley Cooper’s services, Gavin O’Connor has locked down Ewan McGregor to play the big bad.
For those still unaware of the story, Jane Got A Gun finds Natalie Portman as the titular homesteader, shocked to see her estranged outlaw hubby (Noah Emmerich) stagger home full of bullets after being double-crossed by his gang.
With the criminals (now led by McGregor) on their way to finish the job, Jane decides to reach out to a sharp shootin’ old flame (Joel Edgerton) for assistance in defending her home.
The production has faced seemingly endless problems in development and since the shoot began. Michael Fassbender left the project early on and director Lynn Ramsay departed on the first day of filming after clashing with the producers. O’Connor stepped in to call the shots, but watched as Jude Law decided he no longer wanted to play the villain because he’d signed on to work with Ramsay. Now, as whispers began that it might never be finished, McGregor’s arrival at least offers some hope.
McGregor, last seen in Jack The Giant Slayer, will on screen in August: Osage County (due December 13), Son Of A Gun and Born To Be King. He’s also attached to Justin Kurzel’s **Our Kind Of Traitor **with Mads Mikkelsen and Ralph Fiennes.