UPDATE!: THR is also reporting that Paul Reubens has joined the cast of Frank and Francis. The trade says that he will be playing an old-school film critic.
Just yesterday Charlie Kaufman added Kate Winslet and Catherine Keener to his next directorial effort, Frank and Francis. The casting is a reunion of sorts, as Keener previously starred in Being John Malkovich (and had a small role in Adaptation), while Winslet played the female lead in Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind - all films based on Kaufman scripts. Today he's added yet another actress to his cast, though this one will be working with the writer/director for the first time.
THR has learned that Elizabeth Banks has signed on for a part in Frank and Francis. In addition to Winsley and Keener, the film is set to star Jack Black, Nicolas Cage, Steve Carell, and Kevin Kline. The film is a musical about Hollywood in which Black plays an online film reviewer who regularly abuses a pretentious-yet-successful director played by Carell; Cage plays an actor named The Emcee who is best known for starring in "high-concept" films; and Kline plays a dual role as the director of the biggest film of all time and his own twin brother, who has been turned into an anamatronic head that comes up with marketable script ideas. Though the trade doesn't give her character a name, Banks will play an actress who is best known for starring in crappy comedies and happens to be having an affair with Carell's character.
It's really impressive how big Elizabeth Banks has gotten over the years. While she started her career as a character actress, this year alone she has high-profile roles in movies like The Hunger Games, Man on a Ledge, and What to Expect When You're Expecting. Banks is one of the few actresses that can balance comedy and drama really well, and she truly deserves all of the success that she's having.
