Natalie Portman is stepping up to the plate for the lead role in Love And Other Impossible Pursuits.
The adaptation of Ayelet Waldman's novel was thrown into doubt recently when Jennifer Lopez dropped out to follow other pursuits. The picture was scheduled to start shooting on November 10.
But Natalie is nothing if not game, and has agreed to take on the part of the married woman whose life takes a tragic turn following the cot death of her child.
Kissing Jessica Stein's Scott Cohen plays hubby Jack, while Charlie Tahan, the kid in Will Smith blockbuster I Am Legend, plays Jack's son (and Portman/Emilia's stepson) William.
Don Roos, whose 1999 flick The Opposite Of Sex was one of the sharpest dark comedies of its time, will write and direct.