Rapper/actor Common has been casted in the upcoming Terminator Salvation: The Future Begins (#4 in the series).  He will play a fellow freedom fighter and member of John Connor’s inner circle.  Terminator 4 is slated to released on May 22, 2009.

Common is definitely trying to stay invincible this summer.  He’ll be appearing in the upcoming June release Wanted starring Angelina Jolie, Morgan Freeman and James McAvoy.  He’s also set to drop his next CD, Invincible Summer, in June or July. 

While I haven’t been terribly impressed by Common’s previous outings on film (American Gangster, Smokin’ Aces, Street Kings–>does this even count?), he has been keeping busy and I’m sure that is giving him an opportunity to improve his acting craft.  Hopefully by the time Terminator is released he will be at the top of his acting game.

Ludacris is set to release his sixth album, Theater of the Mind, in September, a project he terms appropriately “theatrical.”

He has been working on the Def Jam Records set while shooting Max Payne, the big screen adaptation of the popular Rockstar video game.

Calling the album a collection of his experiences up to this point, Ludacris told Billboard.com that Theater will be film-worthy. Though he hasn’t yet chosen a first single, he said a track should come out by June or July.

It will be interesting to see how Theater of the Mind comes across to the listener. It can be tough doing concept albums, especially these days. Luda will also be in theaters October 31 with Guy Ritchie’s RocknRolla, which stars Thandie Newton and Jeremy Piven.

Lil’ Wayne and (Lil’?) Bow Wow are slated to star in an upcoming basketball drama titled Patriots.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, the flick is set in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina and focuses on a high school basketball coach (played by Forest Whitaker) who takes his team of displaced students from various city schools to a state championship.  The film is directed by Tim Story.

The film’s production began last week and the cast also includes Isaiah Washington, Taraji P. Henson, Jackie Long and J.B. Smoove.

I would suppose that if Wayne and Bow Wow are playing hoopers, they must be point guards because neither one of them look like they are over 5′ and weigh less than a buck-O-five.  Seriously, I hope Lil’ Louisiana can stay off of the syzurrp so he can complete the filming.

According to EURweb.com the actor says Steven Spielberg has approached him to play. Black Panther Bobby Seale.

Will Smith says nothing is set in stone yet, but he has been contacted by director Steven Spielberg to star in his upcoming film “Chicago 7,” which will chronicle the 1969-70 trial of seven radicals accused of conspiring to riot at the 1968 Democratic National Convention in Chicago. According to he Brazillian Web site Omelete,
Will Smith has confirmed his association with the project and said that Spielberg asked him to leave some free space in his schedule for the shoot.”When Steve is ready he will send it. I don’t know specifics, story, anything, but he told me the filming dates, so I can be free to do it,”Smith told the Web site. “It’s not a 100% sure thing yet, but I’m confident.”Smith is up for the part of Black Panther Bobby Seale, who was tried on federal conspiracy charges for the anti-war riots

Variety is reporting that, director John Singleton is gearing up to direct a bigscreen version of 1980s TV series The A-Team and talking about the casting possibilities all over town.

Ice Cube, who starred in Singleton’s 1991 debut, Boyz N the Hood, has been rumored as a potential B.A. Baracas (played by Mr. T in the NBC series), but Twentieth Century Fox denied that possibility.

Fox is in early talks with Singleton to bring back the A gang, but the studio said no deal is in place, and the project is not envisioned as a pre-SAG/DGA strike affair.

If Cube gets this part, they may reallly solidify the fact that he and Ice T are the same person… Mr. Ice T Cube.