Blame Octomom—Now Vick and Blagojevich Hop on Reality Bandwagon

AP Photo/Steve Helber, Pool, File, Thompsett, Wordley, PacificCoastNews.com, Jeffrey Ufberg/Getty Images

What hath Octomom wrought?

With Nadya Suleman said to be close to landing her own reailty series focusing on her and the 14 kids, a couple other notorious headline-making characters are getting ready for their close ups.

Suspended Atlanta Falcons quarterback Michael Vick has clinched a $600,000 deal to topline his own unscripted documentary series chronicling his life once he's out of a federal pen, where he's currently serving a 23-month sentence for his role in a dogfighting conspiracy.

Cameras will start rolling after he's sprung on July 20 and follow him as he seeks to "make amends for his past," including starting work at a $10-an-hour construction job as he applies for reinstatement in the NFL.

Per the Hollywood Reporter, producers courted Vick behind bars and are shopping the series to cable outlets like A&E and Spike TV. (We're guessing Animal Planet is out of the running).

Then there's Rod Blagojevic. The former Illinois Governor who was thrown out of office and indicted for allegedly trying to sell President Obama's senate seat, has signed on to NBC's upcoming summer reality series, I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here, the Peacock announced Tuesday.

All that stands in his way however is a judge's approval easing his travel restrictions as the show is being taped down in Costa Rica.

Her attorney, Jeffrey Czeck, told the Website that a pact is near and what Suleman could end up earning for her participation depends on the ratings. He noted she hoped to do one to avoid having to go on the public dole, which is what has generated so much public anger.

No word yet what TV network she's in discussions with, but filming wouldn't start until the babies are a little older. The last octuplet, Jonah, just came home from the hospital.

I'm a Celebrity will feature 10 relatively famous faces, who, according to NBC, will be "dropped into the heart of the Costa Rican jungle to face challenges designed to test their skills in adapting to the wilderness and to raise money for their favorite charities." No word what charity "Hot Rod" will be supporting. (We're guessing his legal defense fund is out of the running.)

The show will premieres June 1 and will air over four weeks.

In the day's other top casting news:

• Per Variety, Oscar nominee Richard Jenkins has come aboard opposite Julia Roberts in Eat, Pray, Love. Jenkins plays a Texan befriended by Roberts' character at an Indian ashram. Ryan Murphy (Running With Scissors) directs.
• Rose Byrne, Elisabeth Moss and Sean "Diddy" Combs have joined the cast of the Jonah Hill-Russell Brand comedy Get Him to the Greek, about a record company intern (Hill) who has two days to get a stubborn rock god to a concert venue. Byrne will play a scandal-ridden pop star, Mad Men's Moss will play Hill's girlfriend and Combs will play a record company exec. Judd Apatow is producing.
• Kristen Bell is set to star in the Disney comedy You Again, as a young woman distressed to discover her brother is tying the knot with her high school enemy. Shooting starts this summer.
• Charlotte Rampling and Happy-Go-Lucky's Sally Hawkins are set to costar with Keira Knightley in the indie flick Never Let Me Go. The plot focuses on boarding school alums facing a dark reality.
• Maggie Gyllenhaal has signed on for a plum role opposite Emma Thompson's magic-wielding governess in the sequel Nanny McPhee and the Big Bang. The story this time around follows a group of kids evacuated from the city to a farm during wartime. Written by Thompson, the film also stars Rhys Ifans, Maggie Smith and Asa Butterfield and has an uncredited cameo by Ralph Fiennes.
• Twilight baddie Cam Gigandet has landed a part in the psychological thriller The Roommate, about a disturbed college freshman (Leighton Meester) who stalks her new roommate. Gigandet will play the boyfriend of Meester's character.
• Finally, Elisabeth Shue is set to headline Piranha 3D, playing a sheriff trying to save her town and family from being eaten by the carnivorous fish.