Benedict Cumberbatch has become one of the most sought after actors in Hollywood, but he's not the only British star who has achieved that level in recent months. Tom Hiddleston earned an army of fans following his dynamic performance as the God of Mischief Loki in both Joss Whedon's The Avengers and Kenneth Branagh's Thor, and that popularity has led to some new and interesting roles for the star. As a result, having Hiddleston replace Cumberbatch in Guillermo del Toro's upcoming gothic haunted house story Crimson Peak is pretty much a lateral move.
It was just two weeks ago that we learned the Sherlock star was dropping out of the project, but now Legendary Pictures has revealed that Hiddleston has been brought aboard to take his place in the cast. Based on a script written by del Toro, Matthew Robbins and Lucinda Coxon, the film follows a young author (Mia Wasikowska) who gets married to a man (Charlie Hunnam) who turns out not to be who he appears to be. While it's unclear how they will fit into the plot, Hiddleston will be paired with Jessica Chastain in the story and the two of them will play a pair of aristocratic siblings.
Hiddleston currently has a cool slate of films coming up, with Alan Taylor's Thor: The Dark World scheduled to be the next to arrive in theaters (though it won't be out until November 8th). Jim Jarmusch's Only Lovers Left Alive - in which the star plays a vampire - will be featured at the New York Film Festival in October, and the actor also has a small role in James Bobin's Muppets Most Wanted, which will be out early next year. You can watch previews for all three films below:
Thor: The Dark World
Only Lovers Left Alive
Muppets Most Wanted
In the press release announcing the casting it's also revealed that the film is now being both produced and financed by Legendary Pictures, but their new deal with Universal Pictures may have them come in as a financier at a later date. Production on the film is scheduled to start in January 2014, and while the movie doesn't have an official release date yet its expected that we won't get to see it until 2015.
