Well, not the first names you imagine as favorite upcoming co-stars, but it gives “The Giver” a new dimension of attention. According to the Hollywood Reporter, Katie Holmes and Taylor Swift have closed a deal to join Meryl Streep and Jeff Bridges in The Giver, a drama from The Weinstein Co. and Walden Media that’s being directed by Phillip Noyce. Brenton Thwaites is the young star of the sci-fi project, which tells of a society in which there is no conflict, racism or sickness. Thwaites plays a young boy who is selected for his life service as the Receiver of Memories and works with The Giver (Bridges), an old man who teaches the boy to use his unique gifts of the senses. Streep is the society’s Chief Elder, an authoritative and antagonistic woman who assigns the young their tasks. Holmes will play Thwaites’ mother, a strict obeyer of the laws that govern what is described as an antiseptic society. The movie, which is eyeing a budget of around $25 million, is being produced by Nikki Silver of Tonik Productions along with Neil Koenigsberg and Bridges. A shoot in South Africa is being planned, although it is likely that Steep will shoot her scenes in England, where she is filming Disney’s Into the Woods. Many thanks to Glenn for the heads-up.