"Play" date for McAdams, Mirren

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - Rachel McAdams, Helen Mirren and Robin Wright Penn are in negotiations to join Brad Pitt and Edward Norton in "State of Play," a feature adaptation of a BBC miniseries.

The story follows a congressman (Norton) and his former campaign manager-turned journalist (Pitt) who find themselves on opposite sides after the politician's research assistant and mistress turns up dead.

McAdams will play the youngest reporter at Washington Globe, who gets caught up in a murder conspiracy. Mirren is the newspaper's tough editor, and Wright Penn is the congressman's ex-wife.

Kevin Macdonald ("The Last King of Scotland") is directing the Universal project.

McAdams is shooting "The Time Traveler's Wife," in which she stars opposite Eric Bana. Mirren next appears in "National Treasure: Book of Secrets" and Wright Penn in Robert Zemeckis' "Beowulf."

Reuters/Hollywood Reporter