More often than not, the realm of young adult media will spawn some sudden frenzies, and things aren’t all that different with regard to the Internet’s current fave, Noah Centineo. The buzzworthy nature of To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before and Sierra Burgess is a Loser first put him on everyone’s radar in a huge way, and the blossoming star’s prospects are still on the rise.
Variety dropped the news that Centineo has landed his biggest gig to date. He is due to play a love interest in Elizabeth Banks’ upcoming blockbuster Charlie’s Angels. The action comedy will serve as both reboot and sequel to the decades-long franchise that first began with the 1976 television series of the same name, which was created by Ivan Goff and Ben Roberts.
This isn’t even the only Angels-related casting news to come out in October, and we’re only a couple of days into the month. Variety earlier reported that Sam Claflin of The Hunger Games fame has boarded the project. For the time being, his role is undisclosed.
This fresh take on Charlie’s Angels will take its eponymous private detectives on their most high-stakes mission yet. The modern-day enterprise of the Charles Townsend Agency includes branches and clientele worldwide. Kristen Stewart, Naomi Scott, and Ella Balinska make up the newest iterations of Angels. September was a huge month for casting news too, introducing multiple Bosleys and other actors — like Westworld‘s Jonathan Tucker — in unknown roles.
For now, there is no word on who Centineo will be paired with in the movie, nor is anyone aware of the significance of Claflin’s character. That said, the latter’s filmography makes me wonder if he too could be an Angel’s other half. Claflin definitely wouldn’t be out of place depicting such an archetype, at any rate.
Of course, stereotypes are rife in Charlie’s Angels. The series may have left a lasting legacy, but it isn’t the most serious of franchises. The ’70s incarnation served as a groundbreaking avenue for women to portray ass-kicking crime fighters, but it was fantastical, to say the least. Charlie’s Angels is also dichotomous in its display of women’s empowerment. Criticism of the show’s feminist brand is warranted, given that it was written by men and often featured the Angels in objectifying situations.
Still, the original Charlie’s Angels was popular enough to inspire multiple revival attempts, including a network TV reboot starring Annie Ilonzeh (Chicago Fire), Minka Kelly (Friday Night Lights), and Rachael Taylor (Jessica Jones) that aired for just one season in 2011. The movies starring Cameron Diaz (There’s Something About Mary), Drew Barrymore (Never Been Kissed), and Lucy Liu (Kill Bill) really took the world by storm upon release in the early 2000s, though.
The Angels’ big-screen ventures continue to paint the franchise in a tongue-in-cheek manner, and that extends to the men in the movies. Early noughties celebrities Luke Wilson (Legally Blonde), Matt LeBlanc (Friends), and comedian Tom Green (Freddy Got Fingered) portray suitors for Diaz, Liu, and Barrymore, respectively, and each man had a paradigm to fill. Wilson embodies a generic nice boyfriend. LeBlanc plays a cheesier version of his character on Friends. Green is just The Chad.
Whether Centineo and perhaps Claflin will need to meet those stringent archetypal requirements remains a mystery. There’s no way of knowing just how campy Banks’ version of Charlie’s Angels will be until some footage drops. But after movies like Pitch Perfect 2, I’m willing to bet that she would be unafraid to dig deep into the outrageous possibilities of the Angels’ world.
Centineo is no stranger to being a lovable heartthrob. To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before is an all-around crowd-pleaser with great character arcs and a lovely indulgence in some great rom-com tropes (like fake dating!). Moreover, in spite of the deeply problematic narrative plaguing Sierra Burgess is a Loser, Centineo (and the rest of that movie’s cast) still shines due to his magnetic earnestness.
Nevertheless, we’d love to see him play against type, too. What if a charismatic boyfriend role is really a ruse for someone more stoic or even villainous?
And if Claflin should fill the shoes of one of the Angels’ possible beaus, his prior experience in many a romantic role makes him ideal for the job. His very first movie — Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides — centers his arc on falling in love with a mermaid. Love, Rosie and Me Before You bank on his effortless rapport with his co-leads (Lily Collins and Emilia Clarke, respectively).
These days, Claflin mostly keeps busy with serious period dramas. Charlie’s Angels would make for a refreshingly fun romp amid the rest of his slate. So, whoever he ends up playing in the film puts him back into blockbuster territory anyway; one that he’s left behind for years after that final cameo in The Huntsman: Winter’s War. Charlie’s Angels also reunites Claflin with Banks from their days in The Hunger Games.
Charlie’s Angels is really making sure we’re paying close attention. Just when I think the cast couldn’t get any better, it simply does and it already works. Particularly with Centineo’s casting, the Internet age now has more reason to be invested in the movie, while fans of early 2010 blockbusters will be happy that Claflin’s nabbed another tentpole. September 27, 2019, definitely couldn’t come soon enough.
Related Topics: Casting
