Back when word of Snow Piercer first arose along with casting news that Captain America: The First Avenger star Chris Evans was in talks, I had wagered that a long line of stars were sure to pursue a part in Bong Joon-ho's much-anticipated English-language debut. Since then, the South Korean director, who drew international acclaim with his allegorical monster movie The Host and his haunting thriller Mother, has attracted some spectacular talent to his ensemble drama, including BAFTA-winner Jamie Bell, Oscar-nominee John Hurt and Oscar-winner Tilda Swinton. With each new casting announcement Bong and his producer Chan-wook Park (Oldboy) have elicited giddy squeals from movie fans that eagerly await this sure-to-sizzle thriller.
And just when we thought this cast couldn't get any better, THR reveals that Octavia Spencer, the current frontrunner for the Best Supporting Actress Oscar, has just signed on to Snow Piercer. She'll join the production at the end of April, after her work on Diablo Cody's untitled directorial debut wraps.
Inspired by the 1970s French graphic novel Le Transperceneige, Snow Piercer centers on an eponymous train that houses the last known survivors of a global warming-induced Ice Age. Trapped together in perpetuity, always traveling but getting nowhere, the passengers aboard Snow Piercer eventually develop an unjust class system that soon spurs talk of revolt. Spencer is set to play a mother who enters the fray of rebellion to save her son. There's no word yet on who Evans, Bell, Hurt and Swinton will play, but I have to say it doesn't matter. With this much talent on one production, Snow Piercer seems guaranteed to be absolutely riveting.
Tell us who else you'd like to see join this sci-fi drama in comments.
