Val Kilmer has signed onto the eco-monster movie The Thaw, which will begin shooting mid-June. The film also stars Martha MacIsaac, of Superbad fame, as Kilmer’s daughter. Here’s the scoop from Ecorazzi:

A group of student-scientists stumble upon a thawing Woolly Mammoth in a melting ice cap. Unfortunately, the Mammoth is packing a deadly parasite that had laid dormant (and hungry we might add) for thousands of years. One-by-one, everyone becomes infected, all hell breaks loose, and well, you get the picture. According to the synopsis, “soon the survivors are left with only one choice - to make the ultimate sacrifice and burn everything to the ground… including themselves.”

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Everybody I know who’s ever been to Ecuador has come home with a most unwelcome souvenir: parasites. It’s a common problem in South America, where the physical and mental development of millions of South American kids is stunted by all kinds of insidious internal parasites: pinworms, roundworms, tapeworms, whipworms, and hookworms.

“Parasitic illnesses are currently among the top 10 causes of death among children under five,” according to the Christian Post, which notes that “a single pill, however, can make a difference.”

So, with the help of the World Health Organization (WHO) and others, Operation Blessing International (OBI), one of the largest humanitarian organizations in the U.S., is launching a program to distribute Albendazol, a cheap, effective drug that treats and prevents parasitic illnesses. OBI President Bill Horan announced the program’s inauguration in Honduras earlier this month:

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