Joan Allen gearing up for "Death Race"

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - Joan Allen, hot off box office champ "The Bourne Ultimatum," is buckling up for "Death Race," a remake of the Roger Corman cult classic.

"Deadwood" villain Ian McShane and actor/singer Tyrese Gibson also are in the starting lineup for the action-thriller, which stars Jason Statham.

"Death Race" sees a future America in which prison inmates are forced to brutally compete in an enclosed arena. Statham will play a prisoner who, with only weeks to go before his release, is coerced into being a driver and becomes the crowd favorite called Frankenstein.

Allen will play the warden of the prison who runs the race and ruthlessly forces Statham to enter the arena. McShane will play a coach, while Gibson is a sociopathic racer named Machine Gun Joe who seeks to escape from prison.

Production will start this year with an aim for a fall 2008 release. Paul W.S. Anderson will direct the Universal Pictures project. Tom Cruise and his C/W Prods. partner Paula Wagner will serve as producers.

Allen reprised her role as CIA operative Pamela Landy for "Ultimatum," which set a record for an August release when it opened to $69.3 million last weekend. McShane stars in "Hot Rod," which opened to a more-modest $5.3 million last weekend. Gibson most recently appeared in "Transformers."

Reuters/Hollywood Reporter