'Capote' Screenwriter & Angelina Jolie

Capote screenwriter Dan Futterman has secretly been cast opposite Angelina Jolie in a film about slain Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl. Jolie made headlines last month when it was announced she was playing Pearl's widow Marianne in the film adaptation of her 2003 memoir "A Mighty Heart."

But Paramount Pictures made no mention at the time of who would be playing her husband, leading many to speculate the role was yet to be cast. In fact, Futterman, who is best known for his recurring role on TV drama Judging Amy, had already been selected and was secretly filming in Pakistan.

The casting was kept a closely guarded secret because of security concerns and crewmembers were sworn to secrecy during the 10-day shoot on location in Karachi and Islamabad. Director Michael Winterbottom and a skeleton crew went to Pakistan undercover, hoping to be mistaken for a documentary or news crew.

Futterman, who agreed to be interviewed only after he returned to the US, tells the Washington Post, "It was important to shoot in the actual places where things happened. There are lots of little things that were important to (Winterbottom), not least of all the people and the sound of the language spoken."

Pearl was a respected journalist at the time he was abducted and killed in Pakistan - four months before his wife gave birth to their son - while researching a story about Muslim fundamentalists.

Tags : Angelina Jolie, Dan Futterman, Capote, A Mighty Heart, Paramount Pictures