Miley May Cut Footloose; Chace Definitely Will

Tue., May. 19, 2009 3:35 PM PDT by Marc Malkin, Gina Serpe and Aly Weisman

Kevin Bacon, Chace Crawford, Miley Cyrus

The Kobal Collection/Getty Images, John Shearer/Getty Images, AP Photo/Matt Sayles

Not everybody can star in Footloose, but they certainly seem to be trying.

On the same day that Paramount finally confirmed what we've been telling you for weeks—that Chace Crawford would headline the remake of the song-and-dance extravaganza—Miley Cyrus has surfaced as the latest hot young thing being considered for the leading-lady role.

"They've expressed interest in Miley for the part," a source close to the tween queen said.

A source close to the production further added that Cyrus "is definitely in the mix."

As it stands, that mix currently includes Hayden Panettiere, Amanda Bynes and Dancing With the Stars pro Julianne Hough, all of whom have auditioned in recent weeks for the part of Ariel Moore, the independent daughter of a preacher man, originated in the 1984 classic by Lori Singer.

One starlet who hasn't auditioned for the role: Cyrus. Presumably because her singing, dancing and audience-pulling prowess have already been proven.

While Cyrus' reps had no comment on the potential casting coup, it may be a bit premature to think she'll sign on the dotted line. Her schedule is booked solid right now.

The Disney star will soon be heading down to Georgia, with production on the adaptation of Nicholas Sparks' as yet unreleased book The Last Song scheduled to begin June 15. And then she's back to her day job as Hannah Montana.

Footloose begins shooting in March 2010, Paramount says (making the previously announced release date of June 18, 2010, unlikely).

Meanwhile, after more than a month of courtship, the studio has finally locked up Crawford.

As we first reported, the Gossip Girl guy had been in line for the role of small-town scofflaw Ren McCormack since Zac Efron got cold feet and dropped out.

Crawford and another Dancing With the Stars pro, Julianne's brother Derek Hough, were among those to audition for the role originated by Kevin Bacon.

(Originally published May 19, 2009, at 2:01 p.m. PT)

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