Minghella, Wright Team For Clooney's "March"

The last time George Clooney stepped behind the camera was for 2008's uneven comedy film "Leatherheads", which was a completely different turn from his previous film, "Good Night, and Good Luck". Clooney's film on Edward R. Murrow was absolutely fantastic, and earned Clooney a nomination for Best Director.

Clooney's next directorial project, "The Idea of March", looks to be more along the lines of "Good Night, and Good Luck", which is a welcome move for the actor/director. With the calendars about to change to 2011, the film has added a couple solid names to its cast.

According to The Daily Mail and Deadline, Max Minghella ("The Social Network") and Jeffrey Wright ("Casino Royale") have signed onto star in the George Clooney directed political drama, which already has Ryan Gosling attached.

Based on Beau Willimon's Broadway play "Farragut North", the story follows a young, idealistic press spokesman (Gosling) who works for an inspiring, though unorthodox, presidential candidate (George Clooney).

During the campaign, his career is done in by more seasoned politicians who thrive on partisan politics, dirty tricks and back-stabbing. Willimon loosely based the story on Howard Dean's 2004 presidential election campaign.

Character details for the pair haven't been revealed. They join a fantastic cast which includes Paul Giamatti, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Marisa Tomei and Evan Rachel Wood. Clooney co-wrote the script with Grant Heslov and will both direct and produce the feature, which he is independently financing.

Clooney and political themes are always a good mix in my eyes. Clooney seems to do some of his best work when projects are politically charged, and this project should be no different. On top of that, the cast is just fantastic, and with the additions of Minghella and Wright only strengthen it.

Minghella did solid work on "The Social Network" earlier this year, and I'm intrigued to see what type of role he plays in this film. Wright is just great in everything he does, and he and Clooney are already familiar with each other from 2005's "Syriana" (for which Clooney won an Oscar for his role).

Shooting kicks off in January in Michigan and Ohio.