Jennifer Jason Leigh plays the girlfriend of...

Jennifer Jason Leigh plays the girlfriend of Billy Baldwin and Scott Glenn plays a veteran fireman in “Backdraft,” Imagine Films’ thriller about an arson investigation in Chicago, which also stars Kurt Russell. Ron Howard will direct and Richard B. Lewis will produce Greg Widen’s screenplay. Filming on the Universal release gets underway in the Windy City July 23.

Donald Sutherland will star opposite Emma Thompson and Kenneth Branagh in Paramount’s “Dead Again,” which Branagh will also direct. The drama, written by Scott Frank, concerns a woman suffering from amnesia and will take place in present-day L.A. and the late ‘40s. Production gets underway in October.

Gary Busey will play Keanu Reeves’ partner and Lori Petty has the female lead in Largo Entertainment’s “Riders on the Storm,” a thriller about two FBI men who infiltrate the surfing scene to solve a series of bank robberies. Patrick Swayze plays one of the suspect surfers. The film, written by James Cameron, Kathryn Bigelow and Peter Iliff and directed by Bigelow, starts locally July 9. Fox distributes.

Chris Lemmon, Felicity Waterman, Nick Mancuso, Pat Morita, Susan Anton, Michael Sarrazin, Bill Dana, Liz Torres and Meg Register (the model seen on the Italian Boys jeans billboards) star in Crown International’s “Lena’s Holiday.” The romantic comedy concerns a female tourist from newly liberated East Germany, who comes to L.A. and gets involved in a caper that leads to murder. Michael Keusch directs for producer Marilyn J. Tenser from a script he wrote with Deborah Waterman. Production gets underway this month in L.A.

Joe Mantegna and Tomas Arana (the cook-spy in “Hunt For Red October”) join Rosanna Arquette in Stonebridge Entertainment’s “Radio Flyer,” currently shooting in L.A. The film marks the directorial debut of its screenwriter, David Mickey Evans. Arquette plays the mother of two boys, Luke Edwards and Badge Dale, whose adventure-fantasies help them to escape family problems. Michael Douglas and Rick Bieber produce the Columbia release.

David Rasche and Joseph Maher join Sheryl Lee Ralph and Glenn Plummer in Hollywood Pictures’ “Randall & Juliet” (expect a title change). They play back-stabbing corporate executives. However, Richard Dreyfuss left the picture last week, citing “creative differences.” His departure may cause writer-director Coline Serreau and producer Laurence Marks to postpone the July 9 start date for the Buena Vista release.

Billy Zane joins Alexandra Paul in Penta Pictures’ “Millions,” where he will play the ruthless heir to a family fortune. Filming begins next month in Italy, France, Mexico and Barbados.

Morton Downey Jr., intent on establishing an acting career, joins Tanya Roberts and Robert Davi in Amritraj Entertainment’s “Down and Dirty,” playing a flamboyant CEO of a troubled S&L.; Production gets underway locally June 28 under Jag Mundhra’s direction.

Two members of L.A.’s rock scene star in the independent comedy “Night Tour” from Staircase Films. Rudy Protrudi, lead singer of the Fuzztones, and Jacqui Lynn, lead singer of X Offender, play vampire tour directors in this black comedy about two yuppies on a budget holiday to Santa Barbara. Michael D. Nye wrote and will direct for producer Lynn Roberts.