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Karen Gillan Game For Big Role In ‘Jumanji’ Alongside Dwayne Johnson & Kevin Hart

EXCLUSIVE: Karen Gillan has landed a major role in Sony’s Jumanji, the Jake Kasdan-directed pic that toplines Dwayne Johnson, Kevin Hart, Jack Black and Nick Jonas. It’s the final piece of the casting puzzle for the pic, which now is set to kick off principal photography next month in Honolulu.

The Scotland-born Gillan will play Martha, ending what was a months-long search for the coveted role that involved some serious A-list talent. She meshed best with the cast and won out. It’s the latest big get for Gillan, the onetime Doctor Who regular and Selfie star who has scored film roles in the likes of Guardians of the Galaxy and the upcoming The Circle.

Sony has set a July 28 release date for Jumanji, which Matt Tolmach is producing with William Teitler. Scott Rosenberg and Jeff Pinkner wrote the most recent version of the script, based on draft by original writers Chris McKenna and Erik Sommers. It’s all based on the book by Chris Van Allsburg that became a 1995 movie starring Robin Williams that grossed $260 million globally. The new pic is being called a continuation of the ’95 original.

Ted Field, Mike Weber, Kasdan, David Householter, Van Allsburg, Johnson and Dany Garcia are executive producing.

Tolmach is also producing the R-rated female-driven comedy Rock That Body for Sony.

Gillen is up next reprising as Nebula in Guardians of the Galaxy 2 and co-stars opposite Ethan Hawke in In a Valley of Violence. She also just wrapped the indie All Creatures Here Below. She is repped by UTA, Troika in the UK and attorney Darren Trattner.

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