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It has  been quite a slow news month in the fandom, so we were pleased to see the article that Examiner contributor Alan Baltes posted a few days ago:

"Andrew Niccol has been hired direct "The Host". Niccol first came under consideration after Wechsler and the Schwartzes asked Meyer what her favorite science fiction films are. "Gattaca" and "The Truman Show" were in her top five. Niccol wrote and directed "Gattaca" and wrote the screenplay for the Peter Weir-directed "The Truman Show", for which he earned an Academy Award nomination in 1999."
(Read More)

The article basically re-hashes the current status of the movie (producers, directors, writers, etc.) and lacks any new information. However, it does confirm the validity of the Host casting call details that were published on Acting-Auditions.org quite a while ago.

We refrained from posting the casting call descriptions at The Codex when they were originally circulating, due to the fact that the time stamps on that blog were running in a continual loop. It made each entry look as though it was breaking, up-to-date news (when it wasn't), which we found a little fishy. However, this news story references that site and was written by the same guy who runs Acting-Auditions.org, so I suppose the casting details are legitimate! You can read them here.


 
Host author Stephenie Meyer briefly mentioned her desire to finish the Host sequel (tentatively titled The Soul) during the massive fansite junket she did for the release of the Eclipse movie (Via Twilight Series Theories):

"Fansite: If you could do anything, I mean literally could just stop everything for let’s say six months, just do anything, what would it be that you would take your time to do?  Would it be another story?  Would it be…

Stephenie Meyer: If I could shut it all off for six months, it would be…I think I’d get another book done in that amount of time. It’s funny because for me it’s all about the story that’s keeping me up at night, and it fluctuates a little bit because the cannibal mermaids are…there’s such a story there.  It’s a departure.  It’s pure fantasy.  It’s a [map] in the front piece fantasy and it’s a whole other world, and that might throw people, right?  But if I could write that in a vacuum and it doesn’t matter, I’d really want to write it for me.  And then there’s the sequel to The Host...Especially if we’re starting to work on the movies and they’re like: “Soooo, what’s gonna be in the next one?”  I think I have ten years to write before they’ll just do their own sequel."

Lets just hope it doesn't take ten years. Pretty please?
 
The Host movie was briefly mentioned on the Cinematical website in an article about Andrew Niccol's latest project, 'Im.mortal':

"Niccols, of course, is the mind that brought us both Gattaca and The Truman Show in the late '90s, before following it up with S1m0ne and The Terminal. This sounds like just the story to bring him back to his first tastes of success, and calm fan's nerves before he tackles The Host (Stephenie Meyer's take on scifi). Production is scheduled to begin in late September, so if all stays on track, maybe we can enjoy a whole different fight for immortality come 2011."

With the cast for 'Im.mortal' becoming solid, it is reasonable to assume that it will be Niccol's next project - which means that a 'Host' movie will probably not start filming until 'Im.mortal' is nicely tied up.  It looks like Host fans will have to wait a little bit longer than originally anticipated for the movie to get rolling.
 
We all know that IMDB casting rumors are not always credible, but it is worth mentioning that a new (and attractive) face has shown up as a possible actor for Ian O'Shea: Erik Fellows. Allvoices News took note of the new casting choice in a recent article:

"As of the 2nd of August, The Host is officially set in pre-production mode, it is set to begin filming early January. Cast has already begun, if you are interested in auditioning, visit here.

A few days ago, IMDb leaked that Ian Somerhalder is no longer rumored to play the role of Ian O'Shea, instead, now soap star Erik Fellows is rumored the play the role."

What do you guys think? Does he have the right look for Ian?
 
Lets hope that the recent upswing in Host news keeps on going! In a recent article on MTV, The Host is mentioned as a possible follow-up to the Andrew Niccol project Im.Mortal. We've also added the article to our database.
 
Here is something we haven't heard yet, straight from the author's mouth. Apparently, the Host sequel will start with a jogging scene. Random! Ms. Meyer also discusses the script for the upcoming movie, and addresses casting rumors. The Twilight Lexicon has posted this video of the interview (conducted by Twilighters Anonymous and Twilight Moms) from the Eclipse premiere. (We will have the transcript up... as soon as we transcribe it.)
 
Although this website is dedicated to The Host, any other projects that Stephenie Meyer has a hand in will be featured in our news blog as well. This just in from The Twilight Lexicon:

Official Summit Press Release:

Los Angeles, CA  April 28, 2010 – Summit Entertainment has confirmed that Academy Award® winner Bill Condon will direct THE TWILIGHT SAGA: BREAKING DAWN, based on the fourth novel in author Stephenie Meyer’s Twilight series.  THE TWILIGHT SAGA: BREAKING DAWN, is currently being written by Melissa Rosenberg, and will star Kristen Stewart, Robert Pattinson and Taylor Lautner.   Wyck Godfrey, Karen Rosenfelt, and Stephenie Meyer will produce the project.

“Bringing Stephenie Meyer’s BREAKING DAWN to the screen requires a graceful and intelligent hand and we believe Bill Condon is exactly the right steward, having shown equal and abundant talents of immense creativity and subtle sensitivity,” said Erik Feig, President of Production and Acquisitions, for Summit Entertainment.

Added author Stephenie Meyer, “I’m so thrilled that Bill wants to work with us. I think he’s going to be a great fit, and I’m excited to see what he does with the material.”

“I’m very excited to get the chance to bring the climax of this saga to life on-screen. As fans of the series know, this is a one-of-a-kind book – and we’re hoping to create an equally unique cinematic experience,” said Bill Condon.

THE TWILIGHT SAGA: BREAKING DAWN illuminates the secrets and mysteries of this spellbinding romantic epic that has entranced millions.

Condon is well known for writing and directing DREAMGIRLS, KINSEY, and GODS AND MONSTERS, for which he won the Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay in 1999.  He was nominated for a second Oscar for his screenplay for the movie musical CHICAGO in 2003.  Most recently the multi-hyphenate directed the pilot episode for the Showtime series “The Big C” and produced the 81st Annual Academy Awards telecast, hosted by Hugh Jackman.

The third film in the franchise, THE TWILIGHT SAGA: ECLIPSE is due in theaters on June 30, 2010.


 
This just in from ReelzChannel-
The Host is casting, and the very popular choice for Ian O'Shea - Ian Somerhalder - is rumored be already cast.

Here's the video.