Just days after word broke that Aaron Eckhart would be playing the lead in the upcoming I, Frankenstein, ComingSoon.net had a chance to sit and speak with the actor at the junket for his latest, The Rum Diary. We’ll have the full interview available soon, but here’s what he had to say of his casting in the graphic novel adaptation.

“Somebody says, ‘Do you want to play Frankenstein?’ and I was like, ‘Well, I haven’t thought about it,” Eckhart laughed of the role coming his way, “Then I read the script. Whenever you read a script that you want to do, you start feeling yourself in that character. All of a sudden your juices start flowing. That’s how you know you should do a movie. Now I’m gonna be Frankenstein and I’m kind of worried about it, actually. I’ve gotta go and figure out how the hell I’m gonna play Frankenstein.”

Set to begin filming in Australia in January, the film tells the modern-day tale of Dr. Frankenstein’s creature, Adam, who nearly centuries after his “birth”, has found himself in a gothic city, caught up in a war between two immortal clans. Though based on the comic by Kevin Grevioux, Eckhart explained that Mary Shelley’s original novel is where he’s currently focusing his attention.

“Oh yeah,” Eckhart replied when asked if the role was planned to be make-up heavy, “…[But] I think bolts came later. I’m not finding bolts in Mary Shelley’s ‘Frankenstein.’ I think all that sort of stuff is an invention of Hollywood. I don’t know where it came from. Even the lightning isn’t a big part of [her book]. ‘Frankenstein’ the book deals more with the subjective. The feelings of the creature and less about the making of.”

I, Frankenstein is planned for release on February 22, 2013 while The Rum Diary arrives in theaters this October 28th.

Source: Coming Soon

Aaron will be attending the Savannah Film Festival as one of this year’s honoured guests. The festival runs from October 29 – November 5. You can find more information about the festival and to buy tickets at their website.

Here is the official press release for Aaron’s next movie, I, Frankenstein. It reveals the film will be shooting in Australia (Webmiss represent!).

Aaron Eckhart to Star in Lakeshore, Hopscotch, Lionsgate Production of I, FRANKENSTEIN

Los Angeles, CA, October 7, 2011 – Aaron Eckhart will play ADAM FRANKENSTEIN in the Lakeshore Entertainment, Hopscotch Features and Lionsgate production of I, FRANKENSTEIN, commencing in Australia in January. The film was written and is to be directed by Stuart Beattie (director of Australia’s breakout hit TOMORROW, WHEN THE WAR BEGAN, and writer of such films as PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN, G.I. JOE, 30 DAYS OF NIGHT and COLLATERAL), and is based on a graphic novel by Kevin Grevioux, co-creator of the UNDERWORLD franchise. Lionsgate will distribute the film in the United States, Lakeshore will handle international sales and E1/Hopscotch will distribute in Australia. U.S. release is slated for February 22, 2013.

Aaron Eckhart recently finished shooting the lead role as an ex-CIA agent in THE EXPATRIATE, and stars alongside Johnny Depp in the upcoming THE RUM DIARY. He is repped by CAA.

I, FRANKENSTEIN is a modern-day epic: Frankenstein’s creature, ADAM, has survived to present day due to a genetic quirk in his creation. Making his way to a dark, gothic metropolis, he finds himself caught in an all-out, centuries old war between two immortal clans. As writer/director, Stuart Beattie said, “Mary Shelly’s story is about the creation of the first human being. This is the story about that being becoming human.”

“We are thrilled to again be collaborating with Lakeshore Entertainment, and Aaron Eckhart, one of today’s most versatile and talented actors. This story is all about what it means to be human, and there could be no more achingly human performance than the one Aaron gave in our own RABBIT HOLE. We are so excited to see what he will bring to this role,” said Lionsgate’s co-COO and Motion Picture Group President Joe Drake of the production. “This is a wonderfully imaginative script and we are looking forward to seeing it brought to life by a talented filmmaker, and to bringing this story to our loyal genre fans.”

“We’ve tremendously enjoyed making our UNDERWORLD franchise films and we are looking forward to working with Stuart and our partners at Hopscotch and Lionsgate to create a new world for a legendary character,” said Lakeshore’s Tom Rosenberg, adding “We know that Aaron, with his proven range, depth and intelligence, is going to make an iconic ADAM.”

Troy Lum of Hopscotch said, “We have wanted to work with Stuart on a big film in Australia and when we had the opportunity earlier this year to expand our relationship with Lakeshore on the creation of a potential franchise, it all came together.”

Tom Rosenberg, Gary Lucchesi, Andrew Mason (who produced Beattie’s TOMORROW, WHEN THE WAR BEGAN) and Richard Wright of Lakeshore are producing the film, with Hopscotch’s Troy Lum and Kevin Grevioux as executive producers.

Michael Paseornek, Lionsgate’s President of Motion Picture Development and Production will be shepherding the project at the studio. The deal was negotiated on behalf of Lionsgate by Wendy Jaffe, EVP Business & Legal Affairs for Acquisitions, and by Rob McEntegart, Senior EVP of Lionsgate’s Motion Picture Group. Beattie is represented by CAA.

Source: Lionsgate

Aaron Eckhart, The Dark Knight‘s Harvey Dent, has been cast as Adam Frankenstein in I, Frankenstein, writer-director Stuart Beattie’s adaptation of Kevin Grevioux’s graphic novel. Frankenstein’s creature, Adam, has survived to present day thanks to a genetic quirk in his creation. He arrives at a gothic metropolis and finds himself caught in an epic war between two immortal clans. “Mary Shelly’s story is about the creation of the first human being. This is the story about that being becoming human,” Beattie said in the announcement. Lionsgate will distribute the film in the U.S., while Lakeshore Entertainment will handle international sales and E1/Hopscotch will distribute in Beattie’s native Australia.

The film begins shooting in Jan. 2012 for a Feb. 22, 2013 release. Beattie helped develop the story for Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl, and his writing credits include Collateral, Derailed, 30 Days of Night, Australia, and G.I. Joe: Rise of the Cobra. He made his directorial debut with the 2010 Aussie flick Tomorrow, When the War Began.

Source: EW

And the promotion for The Rum Diary begins! Aaron will be making an appearance on The Tonight Show on October 10.

Johnny Depp will kick off the new Film Independent at LACMA Film Series on Oct. 13 with the premiere of “The Rum Diary,” starring the Oscar-nominated actor. Film Independent, the nonprofit arts organization that produces the Spirit Awards and the Los Angeles Film Festival, and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art made the announcement Tuesday.

The series replaces LACMA’s longstanding weekend film series, whose curators included the late Ron Haver and more recently, Ian Birnie. Film Independent at LACMA is curated by film critic Elvis Mitchell in collaboration with LACMA film coordinator Bernardo Rondeau and Film Independent’s programming team.

The series’ weekly schedule officially begins Oct. 27, but there will be four earlier events, starting with the world premiere of Bruce Robinson’s “The Rum Diary.” In addition to Depp, the film stars Amber Heard and Aaron Eckhart, all of whom will be in attendance.

Source: LA Times

Aaron has been in the Dominican Republic lately working with an organisation called AmeriCares. They’re a non-profit disaster relief and humanitarian aid organisation that provides immediate response for emergency medical needs and supports long-term humanitarian assistance programs worldwide.

If you would like to donate to AmeriCares, head to their website.

I’ve added photos Aaron with AmeriCares team, the last two being at the Dominican Republic visiting the health care facilities.

AmeriCares

The trailer for The Rum Diary is finally here! Check it out below.

Another new project for Aaron!

ScreenDaily reports that Aaron Eckhart (The Dark Knight), Sean Bean (“Game of Thrones”) and AnnaSophia Robb (Soul Surfer) will star in a darker version of the Peter Pan story at New Line/Warner Bros. to which Guillermo del Toro was originally attached to direct.

The site says that “Eckhart plays Hook, the Captain Hook character reimagined as a tormented former detective on the trail of a childlike kidnapper. Robb… will portray Wendy, the lone survivor who leaves an asylum to help in the hunt… Sean Bean has been cast as Smee, the chief detective and Hook’s only ally on the force.”

Ben Hibon will direct from a script written by Ben Magid. Filming is scheduled to start in Eastern Europe this October.

Source: Coming Soon

I’ve added photos of Aaron on the set of The Expatriate filming in East Montreal. Filming will wrap up in Quebec this week and then moving onto Belgium. Credit goes to Montreal.TV for the photos.

The Expatriate (2012) – On Set In Montreal (5.??.11)