According to Heat Vision,  Warner Bros.' gothic fairy tale Red Riding Hood is acquiring some heavy hitting talent. Gary Oldman and Julie Christie, both of whom have made appearances in the Harry Potter franchise, are in talks to portray the characters of the Witchfinder General, whose job it is to hunt down the monster antagonist, and Red's Grandmother, who apparently like to knit with silver needles, a fact that I'm sure will end up being pointedly convenient.

The younger members of the cast are Amanda Seyfried, Shiloh Fernandez, and Max Irons (son of Jeremy).  So far, all the key players of a fairytale are here: the young heroine, her betrothed, the handsome pauper she falls for, the wise crone figure, and Gary Oldman, who is a category unto himself.

The wolf in this instance will apparently be a werewolf, and the movie will be directed by Twilight alumna Catherine Hardwicke and will feature a horror slant. The last time fairytales were given a working-over this thoroughly was with Terry Gilliam's Brother's Grimm, although there have been several dark fantasies - Pan's Labyrinth, for one - that have been more successful, since.

It seems epic fairy tale stories are the hot commodity right now, with Bryan Singer's next project being Jack the Giant Killer. The Girl With the Red Riding Hood will be doing an interesting balancing act with its genre elements however, I am obsessed with the dark nature of fairy tales so I guess I'll hold out hope for this one. Not to mention that where Gary Oldman goes, so goes my nation. More as this develops.

Source: Heat Vision