According to Acting-Auditions.org as of today, July 24, The Host has officially entered pre-production mode and casting has begun in Los Angeles.
There is no other new information, but if you are an actor interested in auditioning for The Host movie you should probably read the article.
An article from MTV news announces Andrew Niccol’s new project will be “I’m.mortal.” Since Niccol is both screenwriter and director for The Host movie, there is a possibility that this new project will interfere with his schedule. The article says nothing definitive, but instead suggests:
[Niccol's] currently at work on “The Cross”… It was thought he’d follow that up with an adaptation of Stephenie Meyer’s “The Host,” but with the “I’m.mortal” cast starting to firm up, that may well come first.
So the script has been written, but casting has yet to begin. EXCITING!
via the Twilight Lex.
Thanks to Alison for the heads-up! Remember, if you come across any news, don’t hesitate to email us!
Unfortunately he gives no solid answers. But he is apparently aware of the book and the rumors.
You can listen to his answer in a GQ video interview at 5:16.
For those of you who don’t want to listen, the screen flashes “Stephenie Meyer’s The Host” and he responds:
Somerhalder: That is a rumor that, uh, I didn’t know Stephenie Meyer wrote a book called The Host. But, I, apparently it’s going to be a big movie. Ummm…
Reporter: [chuckles] Yeah.
Somerhalder: I, you know, I don’t know. I think it was definitely rumored, but I don’t know. Who knows? [shrugs]
So we know that the IMDb page is definitely only a rumor, but it sounds like he might be open to it if they wanted to cast him. As he says, who knows? 
FanCast ’10 has been over a month in the making. First there were open nominations, then nominee winnowing (and even a run-off in some of the closer winnowing races), which brings us to FINAL VOTING.
We decided to include almost every important character, which left us with fifteen roles to fill. You do not have to vote for every role if you don’t want to, just choose those you have an opinion about. If you would like to view the results without voting, please click here.
We hope that through this multi-part system, that we have devised the best possible way to determine what is the ultimate The Host movie cast according to the majority of the fans. We recognize that many fans have dissenting opinions and that’s great! We welcome you to discuss casting at the Dream Casting thread in our forum or input your casting choices for all posterity on one of the three pages in our Interactive section.
Please spread the word to other The Host communities and websites! We want this poll to be representative of all fans of The Host!
ReelzChannel Hollywood Dailies mentions that The Host movie is casting (as we know) and that:
It’s rumored that Ian Somerhalder, who plays Damon, a vampire in the The Vampire Diaries, has already been cast to play one of the last humans on Earth.
Source: SeelenSwert
From ActingAuditions.org:
Stephenie Meyer’s ‘The Host’ is now officially in pre-production. The casting process and auditions are ready to begin, with filming set to start in early 2011.
Auditions Will Be Held For The Following Main Roles (additional supporting and day player roles also to be cast):
Melanie “Mel” Stryder: Female, early 20′s. Attractive, tall and athletic, naturally tan skin, long dark brown hair, and hazel eyes.
Wanderer/Wanda: Female V/O. Invading soul that inhabits Melanie Stryder’s body.
Jamie Stryder: Male, 14-16. shaggy black curly hait, chocolate brown eyes. Melanie’s younger brother.
Uncle Jeb: Male, mid 40′s. Wild beard, eyes the colour of faded blue jeans. Melanie’s fiesty eccentric uncle.
Jared Howe: Male, 20′s. Handsome, physically fit, tan skin, sienna-colored eyes, and sun-bleached hair. Melanie’s lover.
Ian O’Shea: Male 20′s. Handsome, pale skin, dark hair, and striking blue eyes.
Kyle O’Shea: Male 20′s. Handsome, pale skin, dark hair, and striking blue eyes. Ian’s brother, with nearly identical looks
More info @ the source. Exciting!
Thanks to chrissydechagny for the heads-up!
Finally, some news on The Host movie front!
‘Twilight’ Saga’s Stephenie Meyer Gives Fans Novella; Makes Progress On ‘The Host’
I can report some forward progress on the movie version of The Host, Meyer’s first adult novel which she optioned last fall to producers Nick Wechsler and Steve and Paula Mae Schwartz–the trio behind the terrific screen adaptation of Cormac McCarthy’s The Road. Steve Schwartz tells me that Andrew Niccol is working on the third draft of a screenplay which he’s writing in close consultation with the author. The Australian-born Niccol was once the hottest screenwriter in town after his groundbreaking script The Truman Show, and he has followed by writing visionary films like Gattaca and most The City That Sailed—the latter is a project that Will Smith has been attached to for more than a year. Still, Niccol wouldn’t qualify as the hottest director in town and would normally get overlooked for such a plum project. He originally wrote The City That Sailed as a directing vehicle. But Smith, who’d play a New York-based father with a London-based daughter who misses him so much that it causes her seaside town to break away and float toward Gotham, brought on his I Am Legend director Francis Lawrence, until the filmmaker jumped to direct Robert Pattinson, Reese Witherspoon and Christoph Waltz in Water for Elephants for Fox 2000. Fox is now looking for another filmmaker.
Because the producers used their own money, they were not hostage to choosing the flavor of the moment, but rather the right guy. Schwartz said the search went like this: “We asked Stephenie what her favorite science fiction movies were, and one of them was Gattaca,” he sald. “We spent time with Andrew, listened to his vision, introduced Andrew to Stephenie and she responded. There is very good chemistry in this group. Stephenie is a very smart collaborator, and she had an intuitive strong hunch he would be the right guy. Based on the script we’ve seen, we think she was right. We’re thinking this will be shot in early 2011.” They haven’t gone out for production financing—they might put together a cast first and come to the table with a complete package. But Meyer is a viable brand because of Twilight, and based on the incessant inquiries by distributors, Schwartz doesn’t think they will have trouble. “We are budgeting right now,” he said.
The Host is a love story set in the near future, when the Earth has been overrun by benevolent alien parasites that call themselves “souls” and take over the consciousness of humans. The book is about a “soul” called Wanderer, which fuses with a dying woman named Melanie Stryder, bent on discovering the whereabouts of the last pocket of surviving humans. Wanderer, a veteran assimilator, struggles with the dogged determination of the woman to retain her identity and values.
source: Deadline.com
The news has also been confirmed at MTV.com, “Stephenie Meyer’s ‘The Host’ Could Begin Filming Next Year”, and Perez Hilton.com, “Twilight Author’s Next Film To Start Early Next Year”.
Thanks to TheHostMovie twitter for the heads up!