Now that Leslie Odom Jr. has finished his run as Aaron Burr in 2016’s much-talked about Broadway show Hamilton, the actor seems to be setting his sights on the film industry once again. Variety reports that Odom Jr. is in negotiations to join the cast of Kenneth Branagh’s Murder on the Orient Express remake.
Murder on the Orient Express is, of course, a classic Agatha Christie mystery novel, which revolves around Hercule Poirot, a Belgian detective, who must solve a murder aboard a stopped passenger train.
While Odom Jr.’s role wasn’t revealed in the write-up, the outlet confirmed that Branagh will be playing Poirot; as of now, these are the only two actors attached to the project,
Adapting the book for the screen certainly allows for having a wide variety of characters with different backgrounds and idiosyncrasies, so with Odom Jr.’s casting, Branagh seems to be getting off on the right foot with lining up a cast capable of capturing the deep history and quirks of each character.
In fact, the only other theatrically released adaptation of the book, 1974’s version, featured an absolutely stellar cast, perhaps even one of the better ones ever assembled, including Albert Finney, Lauren Bacall, Ingrid Bergman, Jacqueline Bisset, Sean Connery and many other huge names.
Odom Jr., before he hit Broadway and ended up winning a Tony for Best Actor in a Musical, appeared in such movies and TV shows as Red Tails, Law and Order: Special Victims Unit, Smash and Person of Interest.
On top of acting and directing, Branagh will produce alongside Ridley Scott, Simon Kinberg and Mark Gordon, while Michael Green is set to pen the script.
Murder on the Orient Express is expected to hit theaters on November 10th, 2017.
Originally published August 18, 2016. Updated October 24, 2022.
