Scarlett Johansson Joins 'Ghost In The Shell'; Matt Damon Out, Casey Affleck In For Kenneth Lonergan's 'Manchester-By-The-Sea' & More

...and here's you first piece of major casting news for 2015: Scarlett Johansson has officially signed up for the manga/anime adaptation/redo, "Ghost In The Shell." The actress was offered the role in the long-developing movie last fall, but contracts have been signed and things are moving forward. Variety reports that Rupert Sanders ("Snow White and the Huntsman") will direct the movie that follows "a member of a covert ops unit of the Japanese National Public Safety Commission that specializes in fighting technology-related crime." So, if you're expecting some of the subtext of gender and sexuality to figure into this version...yeah, probably not. DreamWorks is backing the movie right now, with Paramount possibly coming on board as well.

What's going on with "Margaret" director Kenneth Lonergan's "Manchester-By-The-Sea"? Well, with Matt Damon's schedule tied up for the foreseeable future with Ridley Scott's "The Martian,"...