Sam Rockwell Joins the Cast of Cowboys and Aliens

Sam Rockwell has signed on to Jon Favreau’s next film, Cowboys and Aliens, according to the Hollywood Reporter’s Heat Vision blog.

Rockwell joins fellow cast members Daniel Craig, Olivia Wilde and Harrison Ford on the project. Rockwell will play Doc, a bar owner who joins Zeke Jackson (Craig) Ella (Wilde), Ford’s character and a group of Apache warriors in the fight against aliens that are trying to enslave the earth in the wild west.

According to the Hollywood Reporter,  Favreau and the writers on the project (Alex Kurtzman, Roberto Orci and Damon Lindelof) expanded and re-conceived the role of Doc after Rockwell showed interest in the film, which initially called for the role to be played by a heavy-set man.

Rockwell, who is better known for his indie fare like Duncan Jones’ Moon, will next be seen this weekend when Iron Man 2 opens as arms manufacturer Justin Hammer, which is also directed by Favreau. He can also be currently seen on Broadway as Mervyn in the play A Behanding in Spokane.

Cowboy and Aliens is a DreamWorks project with Steven Spielberg, Ron Howard and Brian Grazer producing. The film is set to begin shooting this June and has a release date of July 29, 2011.