Katheryn Winnick joins The Dark Tower; Stephen Merchant joins Wolverine 3

Last Updated on August 2, 2021

For quite some time it felt very unlikely that Stephen King's "The Dark Tower" series would ever get a live-action adaptation. Numerous production issues led to the project changing hands from J.J. Abrams to Ron Howard before finally landing on Nikolaj Arcel's (A ROYAL AFFAIR) doorstep. Now that THE DARK TOWER has officially begun filming with Idris Elba and Matthew McConaughey, I suppose it's finally safe to uncross your fingers. THE DARK TOWER continues to fill out its cast and Variety has the scoop on the latest member of this much anticipated film.

The outlet reports that Katheryn Winnick (Vikings) has joined the cast of THE DARK TOWER, but at the moment, the identity of her character is being left a mystery. THE DARK TOWER follows "a wandering knight (Idris Elba) who is the last hope of the fallen land of Mid-World. He is charged with finding the Dark Tower while battling his nemesis, the Man in Black (Matthew McConaughey)." Also starring in the film are Tom Taylor as Jake Chambers, Jackie Earle Haley as Sayre, and Fran Kranz as Pimli, the right-hand man of The Man in Black.

Moving on to other casting news, Deadline has announced that Stephen Merchant (Hello Ladies) is set to join the cast of the upcoming WOLVERINE sequel. Much like Winnick's role, it's still a mystery who Stephen Merchant will play in the film, but as a fan of his exceedingly awkward googly eyed shenanigans, I'm curious to see what he'll do in a superhero film. The as-yet-untitled WOLVERINE 3 will be Hugh Jackman's last time out as the character, so I'd imagine that they're doing everything they can to make it a memorable one. In addition to Jackman, WOLVERINE 3 will also star Patrick Stewart as Professor Charles Xavier, Boyd Holbrook as the lead villain, and Richard E. Grant, who recently joined the cast as a "villainous mad-scientist type."

THE DARK TOWER is scheduled for a February 17, 2017 release, while WOLVERINE 3 will hit theaters on March 3, 2017.