As a die-hard Lost fan, I'm going to miss "Charlie" (or as Claire says, "CHAHlee"), the character played by Dominic Monaghan. But at least I'll get to see the actor return to the big screen in Pet. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Monaghan has been cast as the lead in the psychological thriller, in which he plays a deranged animal shelter employee who kidnaps his teenage crush and obsessively holds her captive as his pet. The only other plot point provided by the trade is that the woman he's imprisoned is "not who she seems to be." That could mean anything, from her being an alien to her being a shape-shifter who turns into an actual animal to her being something more realistic, such as a female "MacGyver" who ends up escaping her cage and wrecking vengeance on "Seth", as Monaghan's character is called.

For Monaghan, Pet seems like a big step further into unlikable roles. Most of us became familiar with the actor as one of the lovable Hobbits in the Lord of the Rings trilogy. Then we fell for his flawed rocker on Lost, though except for in the very end, we were made to lose favor for "Charlie", as he continually lied, shot up heroin and acted like a spoiled little bitch. Then he frustrated many male Lost fans by becoming the unlikely boyfriend of his co-star Evangeline Lilly (I'm unsure if they are still a couple -- anyone know?). Now as a creepy "Buffalo Bill" type, he's sure to lose even more of his appeal -- at least on screen, anyway. Pet begins shooting sometime in the next few months under the direction of Irish filmmaker Edna Enda McCallion (at least I think she's the director, the trade doesn't make it entirely clear), who can be seen in this clip giving a behind-the-scenes look at the making of his music video for the Nine Inch Nails song "Deep".

While you could probably question some of John Malkovich's choices when it comes to movie roles, you can't help but notice that he usually manages to walk away with his reputation intact. The Hollywood Reporter announced that Malkovich has joined the thriller Afterwards; a film that also stars Romain Duris and Evangeline Lilly (who probably needs no introduction to you Lost fans, as she is the show's star). This is Lilly's big-screen debut, and will be a return home for the Canadian-born actress when the film starts shooting in Montreal, and then in New York later this summer.

Based on the novel "Et apres...." by Guillaume Musso, the story centers on Duris' character, "a workaholic lawyer drifting away from his ex-wife (Lilly) and daughter, who meets a mysterious doctor (Malkovich) who claims to have the power to predict people's deaths". Director Gilles Bourdos -- who has some experience with suspense having already given us the 2003 Ruth Rendell adaptation Sight for Sore Eyes (Inquiétudes), also helped co-write the screenplay. The film is a French and Canadian co-production and features the cinematography of Mark Lee Ping-bin; fans of Wong Kar-Wai might recognize him as the cinematographer for In the Mood For Love. Afterwards is set for release in 2008; by then I'm sure Malkovich will be on to the next job in his ever-growing list of film commitments.

It's usually around this time of the year that movie buffs sigh and -- settling back on the rocking chair on their metaphorical porch -- reminisce wistfully about how they don't make summer movies like they used to. This, of course, inspires the daydream: What if they did? Specifically (as I was inclined to contemplate after a few deck beers) what if you made (or, for that matter, re-made) the three films that began with 1977's Star Wars today? The following's just an exercise -- think of it as the film nerd equivalent of Fantasy Football -- but here are a few picks for the leads in the original Star Wars trilogy, if you re-cast them today. Only two ground rules: No one who's been in a Star Wars film so far (sorry, Keira Knightley) and, well, no one from Serenity, either -- that's too easy. Alternate picks are included, too, if you want to go lower-budget ... and if you want to weigh in, there are fabulous prizes (well, prize) for the best cast of seven submitted by our readers. ...


1) Luke Skywalker: You want someone young and determined, who can grow into strength from uncertainty -- whoever gets this role has to be able to whine about the power converters and swing a lightsaber. My pick would be Ryan Gosling -- he's a good actor, has a strong presence, and his small-town Canadian roots would help him fill in what it's like to grow up on Tatooine. Alternate Pick: Shane West (ER; A Walk to Remember)  for the same reasons.

2) Princess Leia: Any Leia should be able to go from a diplomatic event to a gunfight and still look great doing either: Brains, pluck, sass and class. My pick would actually be Rosario Dawson, for all the above reasons, and as you can believe her as somene Han and Luke would fall for instantly. Alternate Pick: Evangeline Lilly, and not just for the barge bikini. But that'd be nice, too.

(More casting picks after the jump. ...)