You may not recognize his face, but Doug Jones has been quite prominent over the past few years. He’s done plenty of live-action work, but much like Andy Serkis, he is best known for his CG and makeup-based performances. Amongst many other characters, Jones has played Abe in the Hellboy films, the Silver Surfer in Fantastic 4: Rise of the Silver Surfer, and The Faun/Pale Man in Pan’s Labyrinth. To now add to that considerable resume, THR tells us that he has joined the cast of the upcoming comedy Neighborhood Watch, where he will don the heavy make up again to play an alien.
Jones will join Jonah Hill, Ben Stiller, Vince Vaughn, Billy Crudup, Richard Ayoade, Will Forte, and more for director Akiva Schaffer. The screenplay, which follows dads in a neighborhood watch group who uncover an alien conspiracy, is penned by Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg, with Shawn Levy producing. The release date has been set for July 27th, 2012.
In other casting news, THR also says that Alex Proyas‘ take on John Milton‘s epic poem, Paradise Lost, has added Dominic Purcell to the impressive ensemble cast, which includes Bradley Cooper, Casey Affleck, Djimon Hounsou, Ben Walker, Camilla Belle and Callan McAuliffe. The Prison Break actor is set to play Jerahmeel, an angel who falls in love with Lucifer and eventually take up the title of right-hand man to the Devil, while bearing the new name of Moloch.
The mythical story is said to be an action-heavy take, which may or may not please you, depending on who you are. Still, Proyas is known for creating absorbing sci-fi worlds and should hopefully be able to make a respectful (yet compelling) story out of the acclaimed work. Shooting begins early next year in Australia, with an opening expected to occur in late 2013.
Are you looking forward to these two films? What do you think of the actors added to each one?