Ben Affleck objectively decided that he was the best man to star in his next directing project, Argo. He will play Tony Mendez, the CIA operative tasked with extracting six American hostages from Iran in 1979. He thought it was the smart move because he was going to be near those locations anyway, directing everyone for that movie. (Variety)

Nicole Kidman will be joining Lee Daniels’ The Paperboy as a woman who develops a penpal relationship with a man on death row. She will be replacing Sofia Vergara, but considering the timing of Tobey Maguire‘s departure from the project last week, let’s all just pretend that she’ll be filling in for him. It’s funnier that way and not altogether improbable. (THR)

Rosario Dawson will be starring in an indie drama with a decidedly non-indie cast. Fire with Fire, the story of a man who enters the witness protection program, only to lash out against the men threatening him will also star Bruce Willis, Quentin “Rampage” Jackson, Josh Duhamel, 50 Cent, Vincent D’Onofrio, and Vinnie Jones. The indie spirit is alive and well, folks. (Variety)

Finally, David Strathairn will join Steven Spielberg‘s star-studded Lincoln, hitting theaters just in time to qualify for the 2013 Oscars. He will play Secretary of State William Seward to Daniel Day-Lewis‘ Honest Abe. Sally Field will also star as Lincoln’s wife, Mary Todd. (Deadline)

Akerman, she of the universally-beloved Watchmen, is the latest cowgirl to get lassooed into the musical Rock of Ages, with fellow cowpokes Tom Cruise, Alec Baldwin, and literally 8 million others. Will Akerman be able to stand out in a cast filled with such heavyweights? No, she won’t.  (Deadline)

Best pals Bruce Willis and 50 Cent, meanwhile, are lending their famous faces and heads to Fire With Fire, an indie thriller about a fireman in witness protection. Giddiyap, Bruce Willis and 50 Cent! (Variety)

Ziering, who has a cool Bond villain name, has been cast in I Hate You Dad, an Adam Sandler/Andy Samberg comedy. Ziering will be playing Adam Sandler’s character in a TV show-within-the-movie, which is way too confusing to even think about right now, so instead I’m a gonna ride all the way to Texas. C’mon Whiplash, we’re off! (Variety)