Here's your dose of film news for April 13, 2009:

• Ray Winstone, David Thewlis and Anna Friel are joining Keira Knightley and Colin Farrell in William Monahan's big-screen adaptation of Ken Bruen's novel "London Boulevard." Farrell plays a London criminal who gets involved with an actress (Knightley). (Variety)

• Gary Daniels, whose credits include "Spoiler" and the upcoming action flick "Tekken," has joined Sylvester Stallone, Jet Li, Jason Statham and Mickey Rourke in Sly's "The Expendables," a flick about a group of mercenaries trying to bring down a dictator. Daniels plays one of the film's villains. (Moviehole)

• Alex Tse, co-screenwriter of "Watchmen," will adapt Paul Pope's upcoming graphic novel "Battling Boy." The story centers on the son of a god who embarks on a mission to battle ruthless beats that have invaded the giant city of Monstropolis. (The Hollywood Reporter)

• Elisabeth Shue, whose credits include "Hamlet 2," "Cocktail" and "Leaving Las Vegas," is in talks to join Alexandre Aja's upcoming "Piranha 3-D." Says Moviehole, "Shue is playing the role of Sherrif Julie Forester, a take-charge authority figure in the community of Lake Victoria - where the action/ankle-biting takes place."

Ray Winstone is set to play Julius Caesar in Steven Soderbergh's upcoming rock 'n' roll musical about Cleopatra, according to MTV.

Catherine Zeta-Jones is already on board as the lead actress, with Hugh Jackman in final negotiations to star as Marc Antony.

Rock band Guided by Voices wrote the music, with James Greer penning the script for the film, which is reportedly budgeted at $30 million.

So what else did Soderbergh say about this extravagant project? “I’ve always wanted to do a musical. All the ones that were coming along just weren’t for me. I wanted to do a real rock n roll musical like ‘Tommy.'"

Well, that sounds interesting alright, and I'm eager to see how the whole thing will look like eventually. With Zeta-Jones in the lead, chances are good it'll be a feast for the eyes.

Soberbergh’s next film to open in theaters is the two-part project “Che,” which premiered at this year’s Cannes Film Festival. He also recently wrapped “The Informant” with Matt Damon.

Currently, Soderbergh is working on the low-budget “The Girlfriend Experience,” a film about prostitution told from the perspective of a call girl.

Ray Winstone and Ray Liotta are set to star in Géla Babluani’s remake of his 2005 French thriller “13 Tzameti,” according to Variety.

Mickey Rourke, 50 Cent, Jason Statham and Sam Riley are already on board of the project, which the trade says begins production later this month.

Written and directed by Babluani, the film follows a man who gets a hold of a mysterious package with a set of instructions leading to a fortune.

Endeavor holds the North American distribution rights for the remake, which is titled “13.”

Winstone recently appeared in “Fool’s Gold” and “Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull.” He’s currently filming “Edge of Darkness” for Martin Campbell.

As for Liotta, he was last seen in “Battle in Seattle.” Upcoming projects include “Observe and Report” and “Youth in Revolt.”

Ray Winstone is set to replace Robert De Niro in Martin Campbell's upcoming thriller "Edge of Darkness," according to Variety.

Last week, De Niro dropped out of the project because of what his spokesperson called creative differences. Principal photography has been under way since August. 

Winstone will take over the role of an operative sent to clean up evidence in the murder of  a young woman. Mel Gibson stars as the girl's father, who discovers her secret life after he death.

Also starring are Danny Huston, Shawn Roberts and Bojana Novakovic. Campbell is directing a script by William Monahan and Andrew Bovell.

Winstone recently starred in "Beowulf" and "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull." His upcoming projects include "The Cup" and "The Sweeney."