Beaks here...
Borys Kit at The Hollywood Reporter just gave us one hell of a scoop to mull over this weekend: Quentin Tarantino reportedly wants Will Smith to star in DJANGO UNCHAINED.
(If you are trying to stay 100% spoiler free on DJANGO UNCHAINED, stop reading now.)
I have yet to read the script (may have to give in this weekend, since everyone's hellbent on spoiling the fucker), but Kit says Smith would indeed play the titular freed slave who joins forces with a German bounty hunter whilst trying to reunite with his wife. Smith would join the already-cast Christoph Waltz (as a German bounty hunter who teams up with Django) and Samuel L. Jackson (who is evidently set to play the house slave of an evil plantation owner).
Kit makes it sound like QT is courting Smith (who reportedly has not been offered the role yet), but according to Jeff Goldsmith (former editor of Creative Screenwriting and moderator of the excellent Q&A podcast), Smith is keen to work with Tarantino. If true, all they need to do now is get the money right. The film will be distributed by The Weinstein Company domestically, while a major studio (perhaps Universal) will handle international.
Let's hope it comes to pass. Smith is a terrific actor, but he hasn't really challenged himself since Michael Mann's ALI (though I really dug his work in I AM LEGEND). This could be that Best Actor role he's been chasing for years. What do you guys think?
