‘Murder On The Orient Express’ is reportedly looking to cast Tony Award winner Leslie Odom Jr. in a mystery role for Kenneth Branagh’s upcoming live-action adaptation of Agatha Christie’s novel of the same name.
According to Variety, Odom Jr. is currently in negotiations to join the cast of Branagh’s upcoming drama-mystery film based Christie’s detective novel. Odom Jr.’s character is yet to remain unconfirmed.
The 35-year old American actor and singer is best known for his work on Broadway as well as other theatrical productions. According to We Got This Covered, Odom Jr. won a Tony Award for Best Actor in a Musical for his role as Aaron Burr in Lin-Manuel Miranda’s ‘Hamilton’.
The news follows reports of original female lead Angelina Jolie’s departure from the project. It was speculated that Charlize Theron will be coming in as Jolie’s replacement but no confirmation has been made as of the present.
In addition to helming the film, Branagh will also star as the film’s lead protagonist detective Hercule Poirot. The Belgian detective appeared in numerous works created by Christie – specifically 33 novels and 54 short stories. He is considered one of Christie’s most iconic and long-lived characters along with Miss Marple.
Poirot will attempt to solve the murder of a wealthy American businessman with the aim of finding the guilty party among the train’s passengers. The character was most famously portrayed on the big screen by Albert Finney in the 1974 live-action adaptation of the same name.
The 1974 film, directed by Sidney Lumet on a screenplay prepared by Paul Dehn, received critical acclaim upon its release as well as six Academy Award nominations. It also starred Lauren Baccall, Martin Balsam, Ingrid Bergman, Jacqueline Bisset, Jean-Pierre Cassel, and Sean Connery. According to The Numbers, Lumet’s adaptation grossed $35.73 million at the domestic box office.
‘Murder On The Orient Express’ is an upcoming drama and mystery film scheduled to premiere in the United States on November 22, 2017.
Branagh will star as the film’s lead protagonist and will also be directing and co-producing with Ridley Scott, Simon Kinberg and Mark Gordon. James Prichard, Agatha Christie’s great grandson and chairman of Agatha Christie Ltd., will be executive producing the film together with Agatha Christie Ltd. CEO Hilary Strong.
