Paul Giamatti Joins Twelve Years A Slave

More casting news for Steve McQueen's new film, Twelve Years a Slave, this week. After the announcement that Benedict Cumberbatch would be joining, we can now confirm (thanks to Variety) that Paul Giamatti is also set to co-star along with Sarah Paulson and Garret Dillahunt. The story will focus on the real-life story of Solomon Northrup (to be played by Chiwetel Ejiofor) and how he was kidnapped in Washington and sold into forced labour in 1841. After more than a decade away, he finally managed to get a message to his wife explaining his situation, who helped to organise his release. Other cast members roles (which include Brad Pitt, Michael Fassbender, Ruth Negga and Scoot McNairy) have yet to be announced, but Giamatti will be playing Freeman, a man who takes ownership of Northrup and the other slaves upon their arrival in New Orleans; Paulson will be playing Fassbender's jealous wife, and Dillahunt will play Armsby, a farmhand that works alongside Northrup. Taran Killam and Paul Dano will apparently play slave owners. Filming is expected to begin very soon, and if Twelve Years A Slave is even half as good as McQueen's previous film, Shame, it'll be fantastic.