Variety reports that Rupert Sanders' live-action take on Ghost In The Shell has cast its baddie. According to them, Michael Pitt (Boardwalk Empire, Hannibal, Funny Games) is in final talks to play The Laughing Man: a Catcher In The Rye-obsessed terrorist/hacker. If he signs on he'll join Danish actor Pilou Asbaek as Section 9 second in command and all-round tough SOB, Batou, and Scarlett Johansson as the "augmented-cybernetic human" leader of the covert team, Major Motoko Kusanagi.
It was previously reported that British actor Sam Riley would play this role, but evidently he'll be bringing a different baddie to life.
The story "follows a female special ops cyborg who leads an elite task force called Section 9 for Hanka Robotics. Section 9 is devoted to stopping the most dangerous criminals and extremists, led by The Laughing Man whose singular goal is to wipe out Hanka’s advancements in cyber technology."
Avi Arad and Steven Paul are producing this big screen adaptation of Ghost in Shell from a script by Bill Wheeler. The movie is scheduled for release on March 31, 2017.
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