Chace Crawford has landed the lead role of Footloose, grabbing the spot that Zac Efron turned down. Paramount Pictures has confirmed that Chace, a Gossip Girl star, has signed on to play Ren McCormack (originally played by Kevin Bacon) in the forthcoming musical remake, following weeks of speculation. As we noted, Zac Efron originally had the part, but turned it down because he didn’t want to be permanently typecast as someone who could only act in musicals. No other casting info has been officially announced, but rumor has it that Miley Cyrus is in the running to land the female lead of Ariel Moore, originally played by Lori Singer. Amanda Bynes and Hayden Panettiere have also auditioned for the lead female spot. Footloose is scheduled to hit theaters in July 2010.