Vote Now: Who Should Play B.A. Baracus in the A-Team Movie?

As mentioned in this morning's Hollywood Ink, the big-screen adaptation of The A-Team is nearer than ever to realization. Liam Neeson and Bradley Cooper are close to signing on as Hannibal and Face, respectively, leaving fans to speculate about the candidates for Howlin' Mad Murdock and Mr. T's gruff, gilded B.A. Baracus. Around here, the latter role is the subject of the most vibrant discussion, which means only one thing: This calls for a vote.

While a few clear front-runners (Samuel. L. Jackson, Jamie Foxx, Ice Cube) have emerged from the rumor ranks since John Singleton acquired (and dropped) the project last year, director Joe Carnahan's slightly more postmodern A-Team calls for an even more diverse range of candidates. Feel free to write in your own in the comments, but Movieline HQ's crack casting department has narrowed the field down to a can't-lose slate of six:

· Terrence Howard: Perhaps perceived as little too soft and/or expensive to carry on as Col. Rhodes in the Iron Man franchise, Howard has a golden opportunity to show Hollywood just how commanding he can be. Plus, he's sensitive enough to give Mr. T's trademark line, "I pity the fool," just the right dual meaning an updated A-Team really needs.

· Mike Tyson: The dark horse of the pack, but well on his way to a comeback in front of the camera. Add Zach Galafianakis as B.A.'s archrival Murdock, and Carnahan gets their Hangover tension at no extra charge. Win-win.

· Robert Downey Jr. as Kirk Lazarus as B.A Baracus: Fox might experience a few problems moving the Tropic Thunder pseudostar's rights over from DreamWorks, but verisimilitude is everything here. And, like the series' original four mercenaries, Lazarus is sort of a war veteran, so why not? Don't answer that.

· Gary Coleman: He's got the attitude, the time, and you might recall how he recently decried the dearth of choice dramatic roles for little people. This could be his Mickey Rourke moment. Come to think of it...

· Mickey Rourke: Might conflict with his Mona Lisa duties this summer, and would probably cause a racially tinged outcry, but did you see The Informers? This guy is the meanest van driver in Hollywood. And anyway, maybe Carnahan can coax Dave Chappelle to commit to Murdock, and everything would even out.

· Tyler Perry: Already has the jewelry.

Let your voice be heard...

Who should play B.A. Baracus in the big-screen adaptation of The A-Team?(poll)



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