Townsend Clocks In for '24 Hours'
Staff Reporter

HOLLYWOOD (Variety) - Irish actor Stuart Townsend ("Queen of the Damned") will star opposite Charlize Theron in the kidnapping thriller "24 Hours."

Production begins March 19 in Vancouver. Luis Mandoki ("Message in a Bottle") will direct from a script by Greg Iles, and Columbia will release domestically.

"24 Hours" is about a doctor (Townsend) and his wife (Theron) who are forced to take matters into their own hands when their daughter (Dakota Fanning) is abducted by two experienced kidnappers (Kevin Bacon, Courtney Love) who have a seemingly foolproof plan.

Townsend also stars opposite Kate Hudson in Miramax Films' "About Adam," which is slated for release March 23.