Nicole Kidman Set for Role in Woody Allen's Next Project

The Hollywood Reported has announced that Woody Allen has cast stage and screen favorite Nicole Kidman in his next film project.

The Oscar-winning actress joins Antonio Banderas, India's Freida Pinto, British-Australian Naomi Watts, American Josh Brolin and Welshman Anthony Hopkins in the as-yet-untitled project.

Shooting is scheduled to start in London in the summer. As usual with Allen films, the plot is a closely guarded secret.

Allen returns to the big screens on June 19th with "Whatever Works". The film, which stars Evan Rachel Wood and Larry David, opens New York's Tribeca Film festival on April 22.

Kidman most recently starred in Baz Luhrmann's "Australia." She will next appear in Rob Marshall's musical "Nine" for the Weinstein Co. that is hitting screens in November. To read the full Hollywood reporter article click here.

Nine is a musical with a book by Arthur Kopit and music and lyrics by Maury Yeston and is based off of Fredrico Fellini's movie 8 1/2. The play tells the story of a young film maker living in Venice trying to juggle all of the women in his life.

The Broadway production of Nine, directed by Tommy Tune and choreographed by Thommie Walsh, opened on May 9, 1982 at the 46th Street Theatre, where it ran for 729 performances. The cast included Raúl Juliá as Guido, Karen Akers as Luisa, Liliane Montevecchi as Liliane, Anita Morris as Carla, Shelly Burch as Claudia, and Taina Elg as Guido's mother. Replacements later in the run included Bert Convy and Sergio Franchi as Guido, Maureen McGovern as Luisa, and Priscilla Lopez as Liliane. The musical won five Tony Awards, including best musical.

The first revival of the 1982 Tony Award-winning musical hit Broadway in 2003 led by Antonio Banderas-who made his Broadway debut in the role of Guido. Laura Benanti, Jane Krakowski, Mary Stuart Masterson, and Chita Rivera rounded out the original revival cast.

Nine revolves around one central character, Guido Contini a film director in the Fellini mold. He is contracted to write and direct a film, but is unable to come up with a suitable plot. After recent box office failures, he finds himself drifting towards a nervous breakdown. Guido finds himself examining his past flawed relationships with the many women who have come through his life and the struggle to act his mature age of 40--as opposed to nine.

Photo by RD/Leon/Retna Ltd.

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