Joss Whedon's Much Ado About Nothing acquired by Lionsgate

Joss Whedon's latest film - an adaptation of William Shakespeare's Much Ado About Nothing - officially has a North American distributor. Lionsgate has picked up the crowd-pleasing, contemporary take on the classic, Elizabethan comedy after it premiered last Saturday at the Toronto International Film Festival. The distribution company - as well as its sister firm, Roadside Attractions - will be setting up a theatrical release domestically. "I'm thrilled to be working with my cronies at Lionsgate again, and with The Roadside team," said Whedon in a statement. "That they all embrace a Shakespearean romance with the same enthusiasm they had for Cabin in the Woods shows that they're exactly the mad fools we want to be partying - I mean working - with."

The black-and-white film features a who's-who of acting talent from the Whedon canon, including Amy Acker, Alexis Denisof, Nathan Fillion, Fran Kranz, Spencer Treat, Jillian Morgese, Sean Maher, Clark Gregg and Reed Diamond. The company has also picked up the rights to Kristen Wiig's Imogene and Gwyneth Paltrow and Mark Ruffalo's Thanks For Sharing. ~Devin Garabedian