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The Fault In Our Stars movie; Shailene Woodley Cast as Hazel

UPDATE: 3/19/2013  It's official. Shailene Woodley has been cast as Hazel in TFIOS, director Josh Boone tweeted today. 
Here's the news straight from EW, my original post follows:

Shailene Woodley has been offered the role of Hazel Grace Lancaster in the adaptation of John Green’s The Fault in Our Stars.
“During our exhaustive search to find Hazel Grace Lancaster, I saw some stunning auditions by today’s finest young actresses,” director Josh Boone tells EW in an exclusive statement. “Over 250 girls read for the part, but it wasn’t until Shailene stepped in front of the camera that I truly saw Hazel for the first time.  It was like lightning striking.  I can’t wait for the rest of the world to see what I have.”
The best selling The Fault in Our Stars by John Green (and an EW Best Fiction of 2012 pick) tells the story of Gus and Hazel, two teenagers who meet in a cancer support group and fall in love. (From the EW review: “Their ensuing love story is as real as it is doomed, and the gut-busting laughs that come early in the novel make the luminous final pages all the more heartbreaking.”)

Producer Wyck Godfrey (who knows a little something about adapting popular YA novels to the big screen as he worked on all the Twilight movies) says, ”When choosing the writers, director and now our first actor for Fault we’ve gone with the people that have had the strongest, most emotional and insightful connection to the material. Shailene’s love of the book and dedication to the character was evident in not only her pursuit of the role but her delivery of the essence of Hazel in her audition. I have no doubt that she will deliver a Hazel that will floor both fans of the book and those who have yet to be introduced to the transcendent story of The Fault in Our Stars.” 
“I am absolutely thrilled that Shailene will be playing Hazel in The Fault in Our Stars,” John Green says. “It means a lot to me that she is a fan of the book, and I know from our conversations that she has a profound understanding of Hazel. Watching her audition, I felt like Hazel Grace Lancaster was talking to me. It was eerie–and very exciting.”

It looks like The Fault In Our Stars movie is revving up into high gear. The Hollywood Reporter says the script, from the writers of 500 Days of Summer and the adaptation of The Spectacular Now, is ready and that the director, Josh Boone has been hired.  The only thing Boone seems to have done previously is Stuck in Love which he wrote and directed. According to THR, Stuck in Love comes out on April 19 but I can't verify that on imdb. Either way I'd watch out for it. It must be something special considering the producers are willing to give him this hefty a project. Hefty not just in subject matter, but hefty in terms of the box office expectations for indie films because of the huge built in audience that the producers hope the wildy popular YA book brings with it. You can take a look at the trailer for Stuck in Love (which I also see posted under the title Writers???) below.

Shailene Woodley
Known for The Descendants

Hailee Steinfeld
Known for True Grit
Shailene Woodley (22) and Hailee Steinfeld (18) are reportedly both being considered for the lead role of Hazel, the 16 year old narrator - I know better than to call her a cancer victim - of John Green's novel. I'm only a few pages into the book so I can't really comment though at first blush the younger actress would seem a more fitting choice just on that purely physical level. I wonder if the writers, Scott Neustadter and Michael H. Weber, are pitching Woodley since she's starring in their adaptation of The Spectacular Now? Both actresses have some great films coming out. You'll see Steinfeld in a new Romeo and Juliet, the upcoming adaptation of Alice Munro's Hateship, Loveship along with Kristin Wiig, plus she's Petra in Ender's Game. Woodley is currently filming The Amazing SpiderMan 2 (she's Mary Jane Watson), she plays Aimee in The Spectacular Now
plus she's Beatrice/Tris in Divergent.  Quite a pair of busy young women!

Who would you cast as Hazel? 
Woodley, Steinfeld or someone else?


Stuck in Love trailer