Deadline is reporting that Matthew Fox (LOST, PARTY OF FIVE) and Ed Burns (THE BROTHERS MCMULLEN, SAVING PRIVATE RYAN) have joined Tyler Perry for I, CROSS, the upcoming film based on novel of the same name by James Patterson.
Burns will play Thomas Kane, the partner of Cross (Tyler Perry). Fox will play Michael Sullivan. Sullivan is known as The Butcher of Sligo and is a professional hitman as well as being an all-around nut-job.
I have no real opinion on either choice, other than this being a major departure for Fox.
When Ibris Elba was attached to the project, it was said that it was going to be based on CROSS, the 12th Alex Cross novel. But when Tyler Perry was announced, it shifted to I, ALEX CROSS, the 16th Cross novel.
Sullivan is the McNasty in Cross, not I, Alex Cross. The Deadline article also says that director Rob Cohen (XXX, THE FAST AND THE FURIOUS) is taking liberties with the plot of the book so who knows what the hell is going on here. Most write-ups of this news are using the plot info for the novel I, Alex Cross and it sounds more like they are only using that title and are taking the story from aforementioned 12th book.
