Morning Call Sheet Exclusive: Keith David Joins Wachowski's 'Cloud Atlas' -- Also: Superman's New Duds Worry Fanboys, and When George Lucas Was Still George Lucas

EXCLUSIVE: KEITH DAVID JOINS WACHOWSKI’S ‘CLOUD ATLAS’

One of the most underused, under-appreciated actors in Hollywood is The Mighty Keith David, a true screen talent and presence who has made every project he’s been associated with better since his first major role in John Carpenter’s “The Thing.”

Nothing’s been formally announced yet, but I’m told Mr. David is in Berlin working on “Cloud Atlas” after another actor didn’t work out. He’s joined an A-list cast that includes Tom Hanks, Halle Berry, Hugo Weaving Jim Broadbent and Susan Sarandon.

The Wachowskis are lucky to have him.

Here’s a synopsis of the science-fiction drama:

We already know that Cloud Atlas is going to be weird. Directed by Tom Tykwer and the Wachowski siblings, the project, based on the book by David Mitchell, is about six different characters with six separate storylines in six separate locations in six different eras and the actors will all be playing more than one role. If that isn’t enough, however, actor Ben Whishaw has informed Vulture that it gets even weirder. Speaking with the site to promote his new BBC show, The Hour, Whishaw revealed that not only are all the performers playing multiple roles in Cloud Atlas, but they will be switching races and genders as well. “I.m doing three,” the actor said.

If you want to know why I’m such a fan of the two-time Emmy winner, rent “Pitch Black” and “Requiem for a Dream” and closely watch his introduction scenes. If the story allows for any kind of nuance, David never shows all of his cards and therefore you never fully know what the true intentions of his characters are. In both of those films, when you first see his character, you have no idea whether he’s a good guy or a villain. Best of all, throughout the rest of his performance, you’re always under the impression that at any time he could turn in some unexpected direction.

Something’s always hidden, something unseen and unspoken is always going on. With little help from the script and using only his talent, David always tries to give his characters an inner-life, which makes him an actor with a very rare quality today… He’s interesting.

WHO SAID THESE WORDS IN A 1988 SPEECH OPPOSING THE ALTERING OF FILMS:

These current defacements are just the beginning. Today, engineers with their computers can add color to black-and-white movies, change the soundtrack, speed up the pace, and add or subtract material to the philosophical tastes of the copyright holder. Tomorrow, more advanced technology will be able to replace actors with “fresher faces,” or alter dialogue and change the movement of the actor’s lips to match. It will soon be possible to create a new “original” negative with whatever changes or alterations the copyright holder of the moment desires.

NOOOOOOOoooooo!!!!

HEAD-MOUNTED MOVIES? BRING ‘EM ON!

Over 25 years ago at some Disney World future world technology expo, I put on a pair of small Walkman-like headphones and experience what they called “3D sound.” It was so impressive that my notoriously awful memory still remembers the experience.

I was sure this was the future in film sound; that within five years, movie theatres would start handing out headphones as you took your seat. Not only would you be immersed in a motion picture’s sound design, but you could control your own volume and, best of all, not be distracted by jerk-off theatre talkers. And how simple would it have been to incorporate that technology into home theatres?

Well, I have no idea what happened to that technology, but now the same idea has been taken a step further with a movie theatre you can strap to your head. You can skip the spell-breaking 3D picture, thank you very much, but otherwise I think I’m in love.

If this thing takes off, I’ll bet dollars to donuts it will be because of the porn industry.

AMY ADAMS SOUGHT FOR AMERICAN REMAKE OF “THE ORPHANAGE”

Whatever.

What this story does allow me to do is encourage you to see the original, a brilliant, emotional, atmospheric, and frightening experience.

FANBOYS AREN’T FANBOYS OF SUPERMAN’S NEW DUDS

You can’t judge the look of a film or costume or anything based on leaked photographs. If you’ve ever been on an actual film or television set, it’s striking how phony, cheap and fake everything looks. It’s only after the color correction and lighting that this kind of stuff comes to life.

I trust Zack Snyder and Chris Nolan’s instincts and have faith that on the big screen, Supes won’t look like a piece of “big blue cheese.”

I’ll take this over this any day of the week.

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LAST NIGHT’S SCREENING

Though I’m over a half-dozen seasons behind the times, based on my dad’s enthusiasm for the show, I gave the first few episodes of “The Closer” a look last night. The fetching Kyra Sedgwick plays Brenda Leigh Johnson, a fish-out-water deputy police chief from Atlanta who’s placed in charge of the LAPD’s Priority Homicide Division — which is pretty much set up to handle high-profile cases and avoid another O.J. debacle.

Good concept. Terrific cast, including J.K. Simmons and a very funny G.W. Bailey.

The premiere episode definitely set the wrong tone, though. The murderer was a homophobic Christian woman and the vibe was the worst of “Law & Order” after it went over a partisan cliff. The two episodes that followed, however, showed real promise and anyone who’s transplanted themselves to Los Angeles pre-GPS can certainly sympathize as Brenda attempting to navigate all those streets named Mulholland while reading a bulky Thomas Guide.

Good times. Good times.

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