The Tracking Board’s Daily Debrief (02.21.17)

Dan Mazeau to Write Van Helsing Movie For Universal’s Classic Monsters Universe

Universal has hired Wrath of the Titans scribe Dan Mazeau to write the Van Helsing reboot that is part of the studio’s classic monsters universe, the Tracking Board has exclusively learned. As the architects of the universe, Alex Kurtzman and Chris Morgan will produce the film, though plot details remain under wraps somewhere in Transylvania.

Charlize Theron Set For Adaptation of Spy Thriller Need to Know

Academy Award winner Charlize Theron will dive into the world of the CIA and espionage in the forthcoming adaptation of the unpublished novel Need to Know, the Tracking Board has confirmed. Universal recently acquired the rights to the book by Karen Cleveland, who worked as an analyst for the CIA.

Game of Thrones Actor Iwan Rheon Cast as Lead in ABC’s Marvel Drama Inhumans

ABC’s second Marvel series Inhumans has cast its lead actor. Iwan Rheon, formerly of Game of Thrones where he played Ramsay Snow, has signed on to play Maximus in the upcoming series about Black Bolt and the Inhuman Royal Family.

More News From Around The Web

• Fox’s Empire is closing out its third season in a big fashion. The hip-hop drama has enlisted Demi Moore for a multiple-episode role. (The Hollywood Reporter)

• Hulu has given a 10-episode order to Castle Rock, a psychological-horror anthology from J.J. Abrams and Stephen King. The streaming service also has released more details about the show, whose production is set to begin this year. (Deadline)

• Alfie Allen, who plays Theon Greyjoy on HBO’s Game of Thrones, has joined the cast of Shane Black’s reboot of Predator. The 20th Century Fox movie began shooting Monday in Vancouver, with Logan‘s Boyd Holbrook leading an ensemble. (The Hollywood Reporter)

• UTA Independent will soon shop a movie adaptation of Richard Wright’s novel Native Son, adapted by Pulitzer Prize- winning playwright Suzan-Lori Parks with artist/photographer Rashid Johnson making his feature directorial debut. (Deadline)

• Brian Tyree Henry, who plays Paper Boi in FX’s multiple award-winning series Atlanta, has just joined the cast of White Boy Rick, the story of Richard Wershe Jr., who in mid-1980s Detroit at the age of only 14 became an undercover informant for local and federal law enforcement agencies. (Deadline)

• Will Packer’s Will Packer Prods is joining with Paulist Productions to develop and produce The Innocence Of Joan Little, a miniseries based on James Reston Jr’s 1977 book about a young black woman who, in the mid-1970s in North Carolina, stabbed her white jailer/rapist and was tried for capital murder. (Deadline)