Cuba Gooding Jr. takes up a dramatic role that might just show some return to form, and Jeremy Piven goes all comedic after the rise in his dramatic big screen career.

Cuba Gooding Jr. has made a string of bad choices since his 1997 Oscar for Jerry Maguire, mostly in the realm of comedy, so it's good news that his latest is a dramatic role. Linewatch sees Gooding Jr. playing Michael Dixon, an ex-Los Angeles gang member who becomes a respected U.S. border patrol officer in New Mexico. However his past life catches up with him when the psychotic gang leader tracks him down to his new life. Let's hope this gives him a chance to bring out a powerful performance. Story from Yahoo News.

Jeremy Piven meanwhile has been doing better and better, and I think the high point was his Smokin' Aces (Filmstalker review) performance. Now his next role is a comic one on the big screen in The Goods: The Don Ready Story which tells the story of a man who is hired to save a struggling car dealership on the fourth of July. It will be directed by Neal Brennan. Interestingly Piven is also set to be seen in Guy Ritchie's next film, RocknRolla, which also stars Gerard Butler, Mark Strong, Thandie Newton and Tom Wilkinson. Story from Yahoo News.