Ben Affleck in talks to play philanderer Tom Buchanan in The Great Gatsby

For months we’ve been hearing about the 3D reboot (FOR REAL) of The Great Gatsby, which is slated to be directed by Baz Luhrmann, of Moulin Rouge fame. Baz got his Romeo + Juliet buddy Leonardo DiCaprio slated to play Gatsby, and since then, everybody is auditioning or talking about auditioning for various roles. My favorite rumors were about Blake Lively “auditioning” for the part of Daisy Buchanan – all of the reports made it sound like Blake was willing to do anything for the part of Daisy, or for the part of Leo’s sexual partner. Anyway, that role ended up going to Carey Mulligan, an actress who can actually, you know, ACT. So now the focus is on who will get the other two major roles – that of Nick Carraway, the novel’s narrator, and Tom Buchanan, Daisy’s philandering husband (does that need a SPOILER?). While many think Tobey Maguire – an old friend of Leo’s – will end up as Nick, the latest rumor is… Ben Affleck as Tom! It’s kind of a great choice, right?

So we beat on, boats against the current… with Ben Affleck in a 3D big screen adaptation of what is perhaps the Great American Novel.

Deadline reports that Affleck is in talks to join the star studded, Baz Luhrmann-directed epic “The Great Gatsby,” negotiating to play the part of Tom Buchanan. Tom Buchanan is Daisy Buchanan’s philandering husband, a rich but emotionally shallow man.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, Affleck and the film’s producers must work around a scheduling conflict; he’s slated to direct his next film, “Argo,” this fall, around the time Luhrmann intends on kicking off “Gatsby.”

If Affleck sign on, he’ll be joining a cast that includes Leonardo DiCaprio as Jay Gatsby, Tobey Maguire as Nick Carraway and Carey Mulligan as Daisy Buchanan. The film will shoot in Australia and be shot in 3D.

Affleck was last seen in the recession drama, “The Company Men,” about a man who loses his job but finds something bigger.

[From The Huffington Post]

I haven’t read the book in a decade, but from what I remember, this is really, really great casting. Tom is supposed to be a big, enthusiastic, old-money kind of douchebag and Ben could land that very convincingly, in my opinion. Plus, I’m sure he would be able to nail the philandering part too, right? Wouldn’t it have been funny if Blake Lively was still up for the role of Daisy? Oh, I can just see all of Jennifer Garner’s Dimple Parade photo ops now! But Garner won’t have anything to worry about from Carey Mulligan, I would think. But we’ll have to see who gets cast as Tom’s mistress, right?

Photos courtesy of WENN.

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