What ever happened to Eric Bana? It was only a few years ago that the Australian actor made a name for himself as one of the stronger male leads in Hollywood, but since making four films in 2009 he has only done one other project: Joe Wright's Hanna. Fortunately it looks like the drought may be over soon. In addition to the Stefan Ruzowitzky thriller Blackbird, which is due out in 2012, Bana is also attached to the Sheldon Turner revenge tale By Virtue Fall, and has now looks to add a heist film to his list of upcoming projects.
Variety reports that Bana is now in talks to star in Brilliant, the new movie from director Robert Luketic. Based on a script by Gillian Gorfil, the project is about a young criminal who teams up with a elite gang of thieves to pull off the biggest diamond heist of all time. The script is the first to be produced for Gorfil, though the she was one of the producers on Blood Diamond. The project will be the first for Luketic since the disastrous 2010 film Killers, which earned only $47 million domestically on a $75 million budget and opened at number three. The trade doesn't mention what character Bana will be playing in the movie.
Given Luketic's track record - which also includes titles like The Ugly Truth, Monster-in-Law, and 21 - it's hard to have a lot of confidence in this project, but Bana is certainly a positive addition to any cast. Given that he's now over 40 years old, one can assume that he won't be playing the young protagonist, but instead one of the experts. Let's hope it's a role worthy of his talent.
