Rounding up a star-studded ensemble, Jamie Foxx is the newest actor to join the cast of Quentin Tarantino’s upcoming flick, Django Unchained. While negotiations are still in the works, Tarantino has made up his mind and snagged Foxx for the film’s big lead.

The reportedly violent spaghetti Western is set in Mississippi in the midst of slavery. Foxx will be playing the role of Django, a freed slave whose greatest goal is to rescue his wife from a dreaded life of captivity. He teams up with a German bounty hunter, played by fellow Oscar-winner Christoph Waltz, who teaches him the tricks of his trade and prepares Django to fight his oppressors. In order to rescue his wife, Django will first have to get past the cruel and ruthless Calvin Candie, played by Leonardo DiCaprio (!!), a plantation owner who has taken his wife to be exploited as sex object in an abusive club. 

Throughout his career, Foxx has played several leads in countless movies. However, the one film that everyone seems to remember is the highly regarded and magnificently reviewed, Ray. Foxx won an Oscar in 2005 for Best Actor, honoring his moving performance as Ray Charles, in which he had people singing and tearing up at the same time. Now, as Foxx gets ready to take on another heartrending role, will he be working his way towards another Oscar?

Although filming for the movie won’t begin until November, it looks like Tarantino and Foxx fans alike are buzzing with excitement! Django Unchained is slated for release on Christmas Day, 2012. 

(Image via Michael Tran/FilmMagic/Getty Images)

- Rachel Whittemore, YH Staff