Walt Disney Studios has announced the start of production for The One and Only Ivan. The film, which will be directed by Thea Sharrock (Me Before You), is an adaptation of Katherine Applegate‘s award-winning children’s book.

And like most of Disney’s film productions, there is a large all-star ensemble cast. This time, Bryan Cranston (Breaking Bad, Godzilla) takes the lead, and he will be joined by Angelina Jolie (Girl Interrupted, Maleficent), who is also producing, Sam Rockwell (Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri, Moon), Danny DeVito (Dumbo, It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia), and Helen Mirren (Winchester, The Queen). Check out the full cast, plus more info on the film, below.

Just to show you can’t keep a zombie movie of indeterminate quality down, the long-in-development screen adaptation of Pride, Prejudice and Zombies, Seth Grahame-Smith‘s (Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter) mash-up of Jane Austen‘s beloved 1813 novel that is in the public domain and the zombie horror genre first published to great acclaim and sales four years ago, is back on track for the umpteenth time.

Panorama Media is joining up with Darko Entertainment, Handsomecharlie Films, and producer Allison Shearmur of Allison Shearmur Productions to finally make the Pride, Prejudice and Zombies movie a reality. Oscar-winning actress Natalie Portman, once mooted to play the female lead Elizabeth Bennet, will produce the movie for Darko Entertainment. David O. Russell, the director of Three Kings and The Silver Linings Playbook, is writing the screenplay and at one point was attached to direct. Other directors who have attempted – and failed – to bring Pride to life include Craig Gillespie (Lars and the Real Girl) and Mike White (Year of the Dog).

Lionsgate has selected Mike White to direct their adaptation of Seth Grahame-Smith‘s Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, an adaptation in itself of Jane Austen’s classic, Pride and Prejudice.

Not too long ago it was reported that original director, David O. Russell, had decided to step away from the project, which was followed by the exit of star Natalie Portman — both due to scheduling conflicts. And while Portman will remain on-board as a producer, Russell jumped over to a video game adaptation of the hit title, Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune for Sony Pictures.

After that, two top contenders to replace Russell in the director’s chair emerged: Neil Marshall and Mike White. Marshall has a lot of experience having directed titles like The Descent, Doomsday, and Centurion, and was clearly the favorite for the job. White was something of an underdog, on the other hand, having only directed one feature, Year of the Dog, and typically being associated with comedy. But alas, White showed something to Lionsgate that they liked, and the underdog has prevailed as the victor.