Just want to throw out a quick apology for my sustained hiatus from Movie Mashing this past week. I’ve had some things going on, but I’m back and promise you daily movie analysis from here on out.

● To start off, we’ve got some casting news. The first comes from the set of Seth Rogen’s The Green Hornet, which commenced production several weeks ago. I discussed the pre-production development and casting troubles with this film had during Comic-Con in July; Stephen Cho had officially dropped out of the project as Kato, and they were still in discussions with Nicolas Cage to play the main villain, “Chudnofsky.” So needless to say, this project has gotten off to a rocky start.

Now, we have official confirmation from Nicolas Cage that he will not be joining the cast, as well as a confirmed report from Nikki Finke on the actor who will be taking his place. Cage was not very kind when he explained why he wouldn’t be joining Seth Rogen, Michel Gondry & Co., saying:

“I’m not interested in just being just a straight-up bad guy who was killing people willy-nilly. The Green Hornet was something that I wanted to do, I think Michel Gondry is very talented and I had hoped it would work, but I think Seth Rogen and Michel had a different take on the character,

“I had to have some humanity and to try to give it something where you could understand why the character was the way he was but I don’t think there was enough time to develop it.”

So basically he’s saying that Rogen and Gondry’s take on the character was not good enough for him to spread his creative wings. Really Nic? This coming from the guy who starred in Bangkok Dangerous last year? Yeah, ok. Well the movie gods work in mysterious ways, because they have sent us a much more dynamic acting talent to takeover. I am of course talking about the fantastic Christoph Waltz. Most of you probably saw his brilliant performance as the sinister Nazi detective in Inglorious Basterds last month. That performance was one of the quirkiest and most ambiguous portrayals of evil I’ve seen in quite some time, so I’m extremely happy that he’s been given the nod to continue acting in mainstream cinema.

● One of my favorite comedians, Zach Galifianakis, is piling up the projects after The Hangover became the highest-grossing comedy of all-time, taking in over $273 million domestically earlier this summer. Now studios are finally noticing his comedic talents and are throwing scripts at him left and right. Here’s a breakdown of three upcoming movies Zach has been cast in that you should keep your eyes peeled for:

Dinner For Schmucks: This is a guaranteed comedy smash that teams up Zach with comedy blockbuster director Jay Roach (the Austin Powers franchise, Meet The Parents, Meet The Fockers). He also joins the double-punch LOL combo of Paul Rudd and Steve Carell. The film is about an extraordinarily stupid man possesses the ability to ruin the life of anyone who spends more than a few minutes in his company. Needless to say, this is a must-see. Dinner For Schmucks is set to be released in July of 2010.

Due Date: This one could also be considered a guaranteed comedy smash. The film re-teams Zach with The Hangover director Todd Phillips. It’s about a high-strung father-to-be who is forced to hitch a ride with a college slacker on a road trip in order to make it to his child’s birth on time. So this is another “road-trip comedy,” which follows suit with Todd Phillips previous works, Road Trip and The Hangover. Oh, and the co-star is some guy you may have heard of, Robert Downey Jr. It’s not quite certain which actor will be playing which role, because I think each could play either role with great comedic gusto. Due Date is set to be released in November 2010.

It’s Kind of a Funny Story: This is the latest film that Zach has been cast in, but it’s more of a dramedy than a straight-up comedy. The film is written and directed by Ryan Fleck, who brought us the critically-acclaimed drama Half Nelson in 2006 starring Ryan Gosling. Co-starring in the film with Zach is the adorable Emma Roberts, and is about a clinically depressed teenager gets a new start after he checks himself into an adult psychiatric ward. Based on the young-adult novel by Ned Vizzini. Funny Story will be out sometime in 2011.

What Do You Think? Discuss.