Kelsey Grammer (DVDs) – he of the ‘not quite as good as everyone said it was’ Frasier (DVDs) – has signed on the dotted line to play the big blue part of Beast in the upcoming X-Men 3.

News is that Matthew Vaughn’s (DVDs) follow-up to the first two movies will feature the character in a more primary role. Bad news for actor Steve Bacic, then, who probably assumed that – after a brief cameo as the mutant brute in the second film – he had the role in the bag.

Good news for the Kelster, however, whose previous forays away from the small screen have resulted in the likes of Down Periscope (DVD). That long-elusive career in the cinema may be nothing more than a swathe of CGI away…

As your beloved hecklerspray has already reported to you, the third instalment of the comic-book saga will also feature the acting ‘talents’ of none other than Mr Vinnie Jones (DVDs). Jones has apparently proved himself to be up to the arduous task of stringing two syllables together, and has been granted the villainous role of Juggernaut.

Usual suspects Ian McKellen (DVDs), Patrick Stewart (DVDs), Hugh Jackman (DVDs), Famke Janssen (DVDs) and Alan Cumming (DVDs) will also return to the fold.

What with the series’s predilection – so far at least – for often over-complicated multi-character strands, hecklerspray believes that its safe to assume Grammer might not be the only new big-name addition to the cast. Those Hollywood types like their razzle and dazzle, and the chance to drag in a few more talent-pods isn’t something that’s going to pass them by.

We’ll keep you updated, of course. We’re good like that.

[story by C J Davies]