Webb The Hot Tip For "Spider-Man 4"

How fitting that one of the rumored names to take over the “Spider-Man” franchise name is Webb.

"(500) Days of Summer" director Marc Webb is still the frontrunner for the director's chair of a fourth "Spider-Man," reports Deadline Hollywood.

According to Deadline Hollywood: Marc Webb, the "(500) Days Of Summer" director, has climbed to the top of the Sony Pictures' list to rebirth the Spider-Man franchise. While the studio has a wish list of star directors like James Cameron, David Fincher and Wes Anderson, the emergence of Webb as director comes as a huge surprise.

Sources say Webb met about the Spidey reboot with the pic's producers and executives looking to get the picture into production later this year for a Summer 2012 release.

The studio reportedly wants to shoot the film in 3D.

Although he’ll fit in with a name like Webb, it’s a curious choice to helm the franchise due to the fact that he has no previous superhero experience. But at the same time, that wasn’t a problem with “Spider-man” director Sam Raimi nor Chris Nolan with the “Batman” films.

Sony must feel that Webb has the right style and mind to depict the way young people think and feel. By bringing Peter Parker back to high school the studio will want a filmmaker who can harness those ideas and bring them to an audience that will be about the same age.

I thought “(500) Days of Summer” was fantastic; Webb turned the clichés of romantic comedy films into something new and unique. It would be awesome to see what someone like James Cameron or David Fincher would do with the character but it would be even more interesting to see what Webb would do with the superhero genre.

Look for "Spider-Man 4" in 2012.

Christopher Nolan Talks "Inception" Challenges

"The Dark Knight" director Christopher Nolan has finally spoken about his upcoming, mind-bending thriller "Inception," granting his first interview about the film to The Los Angeles Times.

According to the interview, Noland said: "We're trying to tell a story on a massive scale, a true blockbuster scale--the biggest I've ever been involved with. We tried to make a very large-scale film with 'The Dark Knight' and with this one, we wanted to push that even further."

Story-wise, expect a very large scope: "I grew up watching James Bond films and loving those and watching spy movies with their globetrotting sensibility.... We get to do that here, not just geographically but also in time and dimensions of reality as well. We get to make a movie that's expansive, I suppose you'd say, in four dimensions."

Emma Thomas, Nolan's wife and the film's producer, says the film is something they've been talking about on and off for seven or eight years.

Said Thomas: “Coming off of the ‘The Dark Knight,’ the only thing we really knew is that we wanted to do something more personal. It seemed like the right time to do this. The fact that it’s really just an enormous movie--that wasn’t ever really a factor in the decision. This story lends itself to a movie of this size."

Hearing Nolan talk about the film just makes me even more excited to see it. I like the fact that it’s shrouded in mystery, and the film could end up being Nolan’s best yet. And that’s saying a lot when your previous films were “The Dark Knight,” “The Prestige” and “Memento.”

On top of the fact that, Nolan is an amazing director and he has assembled some of the most talented actors in Hollywood today for the film. Both Leonardo Dicaprio and Joseph Gordon-Levitt are favorites of mine. Anyone who likes Levitt and hasn’t seen “Brick” or “(500) Days of Summer” must do so ASAP.

“Inception” will be released July 16, 2010.

Kathryn Bigelow, Terrence Malick Circling "Held by the Taliban"

Directors Kathryn Bigelow ("The Hurt Locker") and Terrence Malick ("The New World," "The Thin Red Line") are said to be circling the Afghanistan-themed "Held by the Taliban," says The Hollywood Reporter.

According to the Reporter: “'Held by the Taliban' is a package that has been out to studios that aims to adapt a five-part New York Times series about David Rohde's experience as a captive of the Taliban in Afghanistan for seven months.

The reporter was kidnapped with two Afghan colleagues on Nov. 10, 2008, as they traveled to an interview with a Taliban commander outside of Kabul.

Bigelow's name was linked to the package, as the director expressed interest, but she is not yet attached. Malick's involvement is a bit stranger, with the director saying he wants to act as a producer and pitch his take on the material to buyers.

Stephen Belber, who most recently wrote and directed the Jennifer Aniston comedy "Management," is attached to adapt, and Kathleen Kennedy and Frank Marshall is attached to produce.

Bigelow, who has garnered a ton of awards and praise for her work on “The Hurt Locker,” could be a perfect fit for the film. Her gritty, realistic portrayal of the war in Iraq could translate perfectly to this film.

Malick’s involvement would be even better. A filmmaker known for being extraordinarily picky about his projects, if he wants to be involved in this, clearly he has some strong ideas. His films, including “The Thin Red Line” and “Badlands,” usually feature naturalistic settings and realistic elements

The deal for the articles, and who will direct or produce, is likely to be decided by the end of the week.

Mark Strong Is Sinestro In "Green Lantern"

"Green Lantern" director Martin Campbell has quickly debunked talk that emerged that Jackie Earle Haley was first in line to play the villain Sinestro in his upcoming film adaptation of the comic.

In an interview with MTV News, during the junket for his upcoming "Edge of Darkness," the director said: "No, that's completely wrong. In fact, we're in negotiations with Mark Strong to play Sinestro. He's not only a wonderful actor, but he looks like Sinestro.”

“If you look up old pictures of Sinestro, he's very like him. The Jackie Earle Haley thing, somebody told me about it this morning; I had never heard it before in my life."

Campbell also added a comment about some characters that will appear in the film. "Kilowog will be. Tomar-Re is in it... Abin Sur is in it. All the original people."

If negotiations pan out, Strong will have a role in two anticipated comic book movies, as he also plays mobster Frank D'Amico in Matthew Vaughn's adaptation of Mark Millar's "Kick-Ass."

By snagging this role from Haley, Strong will retain my imaginary ‘it-villian’ status. Either way, having Strong involved is a plus for the project. Strong’s upcoming slate really looks good with “Kick-Ass,” “Green Lantern” and Andrew Stanton’s “John Carter of Mars.”

“Green Lantern” will be released June 17, 2011.

Daniel Craig Replaces Downey On "Cowboys"?

Collider reports that DreamWorks Pictures and Universal Pictures are in discussions with James Bond star Daniel Craig for its comic book adaptation "Cowboys & Aliens."

If he signs, Craig would replace the just-departed Robert Downey Jr., who left the project due to scheduling issues. Jon Favreau ("Iron Man") remains attached to direct.

According to Collider: “As we reported on Monday, Robert Downey Jr. has dropped out of the adaptation of Scott Mitchell Rosenberg comic book series "Cowboys & Aliens." But now we are hearing through sources that Daniel Craig is in negotiations to replace him in the lead role of Zeke Jackson. Obviously, this would be very cool since it would be his first collaboration with Jon Favreau, who is directing the film from a script by Roberto Orci, Alex Kurtzman, and Damon Lindelof ("Lost").”

Craig would play Zeke Jackson, the lead character in a story about Apache Indians and Western settlers who must lay their differences aside when an alien spaceship crash lands in Silvery City, Arizona. Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci ("Transformers," "Star Trek") adapted the script.

Lose one franchise actor, grab another.

Craig has the chance to step out of his James Bond shoes for a while and slip into his cowboy boots. I hope he does sign on to star, because he has proved he has the talent and screen presence to handle a big-budget adaptation.

Ron Howard, Brian Grazer, Steven Spielberg and Scott Rosenberg will produce.

"Cowboys & Aliens" will be released sometime in 2011.

Bryan Cranston Joins "John Carter of Mars"

Heat Vision reports that Bryan Cranston has joined the cast of Andrew Stanton's "John Carter of Mars" for Disney Pictures.

According to Heat Vision: “Breaking Bad" star Bryan Cranston has joined the cast of "John Carter of Mars." The adaptation of the Edgar Rice Burroughs book series centers on a Civil War veteran (Taylor Kitsch) who finds himself mysteriously transported to Mars. Cranston will play a Civil War colonel who comes into conflict with Carter.

Lynn Collins, Willem Dafoe, Samantha Morton, Dominic West, Polly Walker, Thomas Haden Church, James Purefoy and Mark Strong also star.

Shooting kicks off on the film next week and will be a hybrid of live action and CGI.

Stanton wrote the screenplay with Mark Andrews. Jim Morris, who produced "WALL-E," and Colin Wilson are producing "Carter."

The already great cast of this film just got even better by adding Cranston. The award-winning actor has emerged as one of TV’s top talents on the show “Breaking Bad.” Cranston won the 2009 Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series for his work on the show.

Look out for “John Carter of Mars” in 2012.

Stock Characters In "The Thing" Prequel

A casting breakdown for the upcoming prequel to John Carpenter's 1982 classic "The Thing" has been revealed over at Bloody Disgusting, and the character descriptions have given away some further plot points.

According to the descriptions: The prequel, as expected, will deal with the Norwegian team of scientists in a remote Antarctica outpost who discover an alien spaceship far beneath the ice and decide to thaw out one of the creatures inside.

Interestingly, only one of the three lead roles is Norwegian, with two of the scientists and a helicopter pilot being English-speaking.

The main female character who unleashes the creature by accident is an American. Her feeling of alienation working amid a group of non-English speaking Europeans becomes a key character development issue.

The original film had a specific dynamic because of cast was completely male. There was a specific sense of suspicion and rage that arose from having those guys cooped up together. Adding women will change the mix significantly, and hopefully help differentiate this film from the original.

Some other characters that will be featured: The 40-something expedition leader who clashes with a greedy scientist with plans to use the creature for fame and fortune. There's also the 30-something pilot/mercenary who reminds the lead girl of her father and becomes her partner.

The Matthijs van Heijningen-directed project, with a script penned by Ron Moore and re-written by Eric Heisserer, begins shooting in March 2010 in Toronto.

Teresa Palmer In "Mad Max: Fury Road"?

While doing interviews at a special presentation by DreamWorks Animation the other day, actor Jay Baruchel accidentally revealed that his "The Sorcerer's Apprentice" co-star, Teresa Palmer, is joining the cast of George Miller's "Mad Max: Fury Road," reports The Herald Sun.

According to the Sun: Jay Baruchel told reporters interviewing him for the new Dreamworks film “How To Train Your Dragon” that Palmer, who splits her time between Australia and Hollywood, was preparing for a gruelling shoot on the new Mad Max episode.

Palmer's Sydney agency Shanahan's would not comment on the casting yesterday, nor would production house Kennedy Miller.

Said Baruchel: "She gets to work with him, and she's (going to be) doing 'Mad Max 4' with Miller. She's the main chick in 'Fury Road'. She's going to be there for over a year. It's really, really cool."

Details are secret, so it's not known if Palmer will replace or star with Charlize Theron, who signed on to the project last October. Actor Tom Hardy plays Max.

Palmer was previously cast in Miller's aborted "Justice League of America" film adaptation, so clearly he has a soft spot for Aussie actress. Only time will tell to see if these rumors are true, but after using a ton of technology and CGI on “Happy Feet,” it will be interesting to see how Miller tackles the “Mad Max” world once again.

“Fury Road” will be released in 2011.

Jonah Hill Talks "21 Jump Street"

"Superbad" and "Funny People" actor Jonah Hill tells Coming Soon that they hope to shoot the film adaptation of classic '80s TV series "21 Jump Street" this year.

According to Coming Soon: In a chat with Hill at a special Dreamworks Animation presentation of their animation slate, the star revealed details about his upcoming film adaptation of the popular television show, "21 Jump Street."

Said Hill: "We're going to shoot it this year, I think. We hired directors Phil Lord and Chris Miller, who directed 'Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs' and are friends of mine. They are incredible. Their take on the movie is incredible... It's about cops who go back to high school. Young rookie cops who go back to high school. I think that's a real interesting idea as opposed to saying, that's not what happened in the show so it can't happen in the movie'.”

Though the film will keep the same basic premise as the series, rookie cops who go undercover as students in a high school suggests that the tone will not be the parody many are expecting.

Hill added: "It's a comedy with really cool action. We're not doing something serious like 'Miami Vice.' But it's not a parody. It's a funny movie with a lot of great action and a real story. I've been saying that it's like a John Hughes movie with 'Bad Boys' style action."

Outside of Hill, who will play one of the police officers, there is no cast currently lined up. When asked if the characters would be the same characters as on the series, Hill said, "There might be a couple of surprises in there... [T]he Chapel's there. There will be stuff from the show."

This project sounds like it will be awesome. I am a big fan of Hill’s humor and I thought he was great in his supporting roles in both “Knocked Up” and “Funny People.” We’ll see how he fits into the role of a cop, but since it’s a cop playing a high school student, it won’t be that much of a stretch for Hill.

The film hopes to shoot later this year.

Marc Forster Helms "The Chancellor Manuscript"

Marc Forster is going from one great spy literature author to another with the Swedish director now set to helm the long-gestating film adaptation of "The Chancellor Manuscript," reports Variety.

According to Variety: Marc Forster is attached to direct "The Chancellor Manuscript" for Paramount. The studio--which paid a rich $4 million for the Robert Ludlum political thriller in 2005--has tapped Peter O'Brien to adapt. O’Brien’s spy thriller "Unlocked" made the coveted 2008 Blacklist.

Based on the 1977 novel by "Bourne Identity'" author Ludlum, the story centers on Peter Chancellor, who turns in a novel about D.C. power brokers blackmailed into altering U.S. policies. When some operatives get hold of the manuscript, they think he has uncovered their actual scheme and try to hunt the author down.

“Manuscript” is being developed as a Leonardo DiCaprio starring vehicle, and has seen earlier drafts penned by Michael Seitzman and Alessandro Camon.

Forster, whose credits include "The Kite Runner," most recently directed the James Bond film, "Quantum of Solace."

In recent years, the late Ludlum's thrillers have proved irresistible to studios and big-name talent. Universal, the studio behind Ludlum's "Bourne" franchise, is developing "The Sigma Protocol." And Tom Cruise, Denzel Washington and helmer David Cronenberg are attached to an adaptation of "The Matarese Circle" at MGM.

Forster's a competent director, and clearly works well with actors, but “Quantum of Solace” was mediocre, at best. But with Dicaprio starring, this film could end up being one of the best Ludlum adaptations yet, “Bourne” series included.

Look for “The Chancellor Manuscript” in 2011.