In Brief: Josh Brolin loads up for horror pic ‘Weapons’, and more

Dune star Josh Brolin is in talks to star in Weapons, Zach Cregger‘s follow-up to his 2022 horror thriller Barbarian, according to The Hollywood Reporter. Pedro Pascal was previously set to star in the film, but the writers strike created a scheduling conflict with his commitment to Marvel’s Fantastic Four, which starts shooting this summer. Weapons is described as “an interrelated, multistory horror epic that tonally is in the vein of [Paul Thomas Anderson‘s 1999 film] Magnolia,” per the outlet. Brolin will next be seen in Dune: Part Two, opening March 1. He reprises his role of war master Gurney Halleck …

Variety reports America Ferrera, who’s up for a Best Supporting Actress Oscar for her role in Barbie, has found her next project. She’s been tapped to star in Paul Greengrass’ upcoming drama The Lost Bus alongside Oscar winner Matthew McConaughey. The film is based on Lizzie Johnson’s book Paradise: One Town’s Struggle to Survive an American Wildfire, about the devastating 2018 California wildfires — the deadliest in the state’s history — that resulted in over 100 deaths and destroyed most of the town of Paradise. Filming kicks off this spring …

Saturday Night Live alum Jay Pharoah has signed on to host Fox’s new game show The Quiz with Balls, according to Deadline. The quiz show, per the outlet, “pits brains against balls combining a high-stakes quiz show with a large-scale physical competition,” featuring two families competing for $100,000 in a “battle of the balls” …