Carla Woodcock has signed on to join the cast of "White," the upcoming comedy that already has Kate Beckinsale and Katherine McNamara attached, Hollywood Buzz News has confirmed exclusively.
Details about Woodcock's specific role remain under wraps, but sources with knowledge of the production describe her part as a key supporting turn that puts her in direct comedic conflict with the film's established leads. The casting marks another step in a steadily rising profile for the actress, who has spent the past several years building a resume across independent film and television before landing this higher-profile studio project.
The presence of Beckinsale and McNamara at the top of the call sheet gives "White" an unusual blend of seasoned genre experience and younger-generation star power, and Woodcock's addition rounds out what producers are said to view as a three-hander of sorts, with the actresses sharing a significant amount of screen time.
A Story Rooted in an Earlier Hollywood Hit
The premise of "White" will ring familiar to anyone who remembers a certain mid-2000s studio comedy. The film follows two FBI agent brothers, Marcus and Kevin Copeland, who accidentally derail a drug bust. Facing the prospect of losing their jobs, they agree to a make-good assignment: escorting a pair of socialites to the Hamptons. When the women are disfigured in a car accident and refuse to continue, the brothers are left with no fallback and decide to impersonate the sisters themselves, transforming from black men into wealthy white women.
That logline belongs to the 2004 comedy "White Chicks," directed by Keenen Ivory Wayans and starring Shawn and Marlon Wayans as Kevin and Marcus Copeland. The original film also featured Frankie Faison as Chief Elliott Gordon, Terry Crews as Latrell Spencer, Faune Chambers Watkins as Gina Copeland, Rochelle Aytes as Denise Porter, John Heard as Warren Vandergeld, and Lochlyn Munro as Agent Jake Harper. It ran 109 minutes, carried a comedy and crime classification, and was released on June 23, 2004. Its current audience rating sits at 6.964 out of 10.
It is not yet clear whether the new "White" is a direct remake, a reboot, or a fresh take that borrows the same central conceit. Representatives for the production declined to elaborate on the script's relationship to the earlier movie, and no release date has been announced. What is confirmed is that the project shares the original's title and its core setup involving the two agent brothers and the socialites they are assigned to protect.
What Woodcock Brings to the Table
Woodcock's casting is notable in part because it signals the production is not simply recycling names from the 2004 version. Beckinsale and McNamara bring their own established audiences, and Woodcock's involvement suggests the filmmakers are assembling a cast designed to feel current rather than nostalgic.
The actress has not yet commented publicly on the hire. Insiders say she is expected to begin work alongside Beckinsale and McNamara in the coming months, though the shoot schedule has not been disclosed.
For Beckinsale, the project represents a return to broad studio comedy after a long stretch of action and thriller work. McNamara, meanwhile, continues to parlay a devoted following from her television roles into larger film parts. Pairing them with Woodcock gives the film three distinct performers whose strengths do not obviously overlap, which is often exactly what a comedy of this type needs.
Timing and Tone
Hollywood has shown a durable appetite for high-concept comedies built on disguise and mistaken identity, and the premise underlying "White" is nothing if not high-concept. The original film leaned heavily on physical comedy and the spectacle of its two leads navigating the world as women, and any new version will have to navigate a very different cultural conversation than the one that existed in 2004.
That tension is likely to be a central question for the new production: how closely to follow the original's comedic playbook and how much to update it for a contemporary audience. The casting of Beckinsale, McNamara, and now Woodcock offers one early hint that the filmmakers intend to put women at the center of the humor rather than treat them purely as the target of it.
Production timelines, a distributor, and a release window for "White" have not been made public. Hollywood Buzz News will continue to follow the project as more casting and behind-the-camera details are confirmed.
Source: Hollywood Reporter
