‘The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo’ Remake Hunts for a Female Lead

The Hollywood remake of the film, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, is officially underway. Not only does the film already have a director, producer, and the talent of James Bond’s Daniel Craig, but a tentative release date has already been set.

Craig will play the lead male role as journalist Mikael Blomkvist. This adapted version of the Swedish noir novel will be directed by David Fincher, of Fight Club and Panic Room fame.

Casting for the lead actress has been particularly difficult as the role of Lisbeth Salander has become very coveted. Salander, the female heroine and star of Stieg Larson’s trilogy of novels, is a rebellious genius with a knack for hacking computers.

Among the front runners are Natalie Portman, Ellen Page and Carey Mulligan, according to various rumors. However, four other unknown actresses – Rooney Mara, Lea Seydoux, Sarah Snook and Sophie Lowe – are also being considered.

Reports have said that no actress over the age of 24 or taller than 5 feet and 5 inches will be considered. Sony Entertainment declared that it wants to keep the film as similar to the book as possible, which is one of their reasons for hiring David Fincher.

The intended release date is December 2011.