Johnson, Hayek, Kitsch & Wilde in line for Oliver Stone's Savages

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And Jennifer Lawrence is out

There was word last week that Aaron Johnson ( Kick-Ass ) was offered the lead role of Ben in Oliver Stone's Savages .

Now there's talk that Taylor Kitsch, Olivia Wilde and Salma Hayek are all in consideration.

Savages , adapted from Don Winslow's novel, follows the fortunes of Laguna Beach weed-cultivators Ben and Chon. They attract the unwanted attention of the violent Baja Cartel, who are offing any rival dealers refusing to work through them.

Taylor Kitsch is up for the role of Chon. Kitsch has appeared in Friday Night Lights , and he was Gambit in X-Men Origins: Wolverine . He's also headlining two 2012 biggies in the shape of John Carter of Mars and Battleship .

Johnson has also recently been linked to Joe Wright's new take on Anna Karenina .

Stone is looking at Olivia Wilde to replace Jennifer Lawrence as the guys' accomplice Ophelia, after the latter dropped out to star in The Hunger Games .

Salma Hayek is apparently in line to play the cartel matriarch, which sounds like a welcome return to edgier territory for her.

All in all, it seems like Stone is rounding up a particularly tasty cast for what sounds like an intriguing take on the often-stale drug-thriller format.

Matt Maytum
Matt Maytum
Former Editor of Total Film magazine

Matt Maytum is the former Editor of Total Film magazine. Over the past decade, Matt has worked in various roles for TF online and in print, including at GamesRadar+. Bucket-list-ticking career highlights have included reporting from the set of Tenet and Avengers: Infinity War, as well as covering Comic-Con, TIFF and the Sundance Film Festival.