Ellroy adaptation underway: White Jazz casting news

October 6, 2007

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Narc and Smokin’ Aces writer and director Joe Carnahan says on his blog that two characters - Junior Stemmons and Glenda Bledsoe - have been cast for the upcoming James Ellroy adaptation, White Jazz. No news on who the actors are, but Stemmons will be played by someone who also appeared in Smokin’ Aces. (Scan the cast of the film for the perfect actor to play a volatile cop.) Hopefully, we will soon find out who gets to join George Clooney, who plays Dave Klein, a vice cop and the main character in the movie, when filming begins in January. Last year, there were rumours that Guy Pearce may be making a cameo to reprise his L.A. Confidential role, Ed Exley, but they’ve been shot down since. Apparently, they are not allowed to use Exley at all in the movie.

Carnahan is simultaneously working on another adaptation, Killing Pablo, with Christian Bale and Javier Bardem attached. The movie deals with the assassination of Pablo Escobar, a Colombian gangster played by Bardem, and is based on a novel by Mark Bowden.

White Jazz is the fourth novel in Ellroy’s L.A. quartet (The Black Dahlia, The Big Nowhere, L.A. Confidential) and not the only Ellroy story that we will be seeing in movie theatres in the near future. The Night Watchman, based on Ellroy’s original screenplay, directed by David Ayer (Training Day, Harsh Times) and starring Keanu Reeves, Hugh Laurie and Forest Whitaker, wrapped filming in August.

Two Ellroy films within a year, two really cool directors, a bunch of great actors… tough to decide which movie to look forward to more. The Night Watchman is scheduled for release in 2008 and White Jazz will follow in 2009.