Can you believe it's almost May? Another month of 2008 is almost over, and we've got more casting news, courtesy of Variety:

• New York, I Love You already has a flipping huge and intrigue-inducing cast that ranges from Ethan Hawke to Julie Christie. Now we've got two more players in the mix. Both Carla Gugino (Sin City) and Goran Visnjic (Elektra) have signed on for a segment directed by Andrei Zvyagintsev. There's no word on what this segment will focus on, but I'll go out on a limb and say it'll feature some sort of love in New York City.
• Then there's a young actress by the name of Emilie De Ravin. If you're one of those Lost fiends out there, she's Claire Littleton in the series. On the big screen side of things, she had a lead gig in The Hills Have Eyes. But now she gets to deal with some Public Enemies. While enemies usually aren't a desirable sort of group to hang with, this melange has Johnny Depp, Christian Bale, Channing Tatum, Billy Crudup, Giovanni Ribisi, Stephen Dorff, Rory Cochrane, David Wenham ... basically, a ton of great actors, plus a bunch of beloved indie boys from the '90s. According to IMDb, she'll play Anna Patzke.
• Finally, there's the girl who made the world of Gossip Girl all the more intriguing -- Ms. Serena van der Woodsen herself, Blake Lively. She's picked up a lead role in the upcoming film The Private Lives of Pippa Lee, which stars Keanu Reeves and Winona Ryder. There's no word on who she will play in the feature.

I'm now convinced that we'll have a steady stream of Bond rumors until the next film finally hits theaters sometime during the 2008 holiday season, especially since the casting game is already being played. The Australian magazine New Idea has just published a piece that claims Aussie actress Abbie Cornish, most notable for the film Somersault, is flying to Singapore to meet with Bond principals about a role in the next film. A source at MGM -- who knows what kind of source -- apparently had the following to say to the paper: "Abbie is perfect because she is not familiar to film audiences, but at the same time people have become intrigued by her. She may not have enjoyed being caught up in a scandal at the time but it certainly helped her profile."

The scandal being referred is the one where Cornish allegedly broke up Reese Witherspoon's marriage to Ryan Phillippe. The paper claims that Cornish is due to meet with Bond producer Barbara Broccoli as well as MGM executives and Daniel Craig. This isn't the only Bond rumor flying around, of course. A major villain role in Bond 22 -- Vesper's Algerian boyfriend -- is also reportedly being cast, and Croatian actor Goran Visnjic, most known for his role as a doctor on the television show ER, has been talked about as an ideal choice for the role. Stay tuned to Cinematical as we waste terabytes bunking and de-bunking each new Bond rumor that comes down the pike. Also, check out our new regular Bondcast podcast, appearing every other Friday!