‘Divergent’ Series Casting Rumors: Jeff Daniels To Join 'Allegiant' Sequels; What Character Will He Play?

"The Newsroom" star Jeff Daniels is trading in his desk and suit for a dystopian future where the world is divided into five factions. The Hollywood Reporter is reporting that Daniels is in the final stages of negotiations to jump into the role of David alongside the franchise's star Shailene Woodley.

In Veronica Roth’s YA trilogy, David becomes an integral part of the final pages of the third book, “Allegiant.” As the leader of the Bureau of Genetic Welfare, his character is set to eclipse the villainous Jeanine (Kate Winslet) in terms of all-knowing power. The secrets he reveals will answer Tris’ (Woodley) questions about her origin as a Divergent and about the structure of her society. And like many recent YA book adaptations, this final chapter will be split into two parts.

Before his time in Andrew Sorkin’s HBO series “The Newsroom,” Daniels was perhaps best recognized as Jim Carrey’s buddy in the goofball 1994 comedy “Dumb and Dumber.” He will rejoin Sorkin for his next project, a biopic on Apple CEO Steve Jobs, and appear in Ridley Scott’s new space drama, “The Martian.”

Robert Schwentke, the director of the second "Divergent" series film, “Insurgent,” will take the helm again for “Allegiant: Part 1.” Production is set to start in May. Principle shooting will reportedly take place in Atlanta. “The Divergent Series: Insurgent” opened on March 20 and has drawn in $124 million in U.S. ticket sales so far.

“Allegiant: Part 1” will open March 16, 2016. “Allegiant: Part 2” is scheduled to hit theaters March 24, 2017.