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Seth Rogen Will Flash His Fake Badge and Take Kevin James Down

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Battle of the Husky Mall Cops!: First it was volcanoes, then it was asteroids, then it was Truman Capote. Now 2009 will witness an epic showdown between studios over whose chunky-mall-security-guard comedy will reign supreme, as Warner Bros. lands Seth Rogen to star in Jody Hill’s Observe and Report, about a shopping-center rent-a-cop who faces off against local police. It’s a clear gauntlet throwdown against Columbia’s Kevin James starrer Mall Cop. Filmgoers are already drawing lines and taking sides, but we at Vulture would caution partisans that it ultimately comes down to delegates. [Variety]

Reitman Makes Carrey Lucky Pierre: Jason Reitman will direct Jim Carrey in the Fox Atomic comedy Pierre Pierre, about a self-indulgent French nihilist smuggling a stolen painting into London. While we’re certainly dreading the accent Carrey is no doubt preparing in front of the mirror at this moment, the real puzzler is the $13 million budget. For a Jim Carrey movie from the director of Juno? What exactly happens in this movie that that’s all the scratch Fox wants to put up? [Variety]

Elba, Larter, Knowles Obsessed: Stringer Bell himself, Idris Elba, stars in the Screen Gems thriller Obsessed as an asset manager (presumably a legit one this time) with a beautiful wife (Beyoncé Knowles) who is stalked by a temp office worker (Ali Larter). No confirmation of a third-act Larter-Beyoncé catfight, but really, how can they not have one? [Variety]

Rees Resurrects Cantata: Tony-winning actor Roger Rees will direct the first New York performances of A White House Cantata, derived from Leonard Bernstein and Alan Jay Lerner’s legendary 1976 Broadway flop 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, which examines race relations in America through stories of the eleven presidents who occupied the White House from 1800 to 1900. Jeez, how could that have stiffed? A story that specific and tightly focused? We’re surprised it’s not still running today. [Playbill]

26 for 24: Is your loved one a 24 fan in an advanced state of withdrawal? Well, good news: The drooling and twitching may subside sooner than expected, given Fox’s announcement of a two-hour prequel set to air this fall that will bridge the two-year gap between the sixth and seventh seasons. [HR]

Earle Pulls Baez’s Strings: Steve Earle, who is producing Joan Baez’s as-yet-untitled new album, set for release in late summer or early fall, describes it as a “fuckin’ great record, man,†and goes on to promise that it will be better than his crappy version of “Way Down in the Hole†on this season’s The Wire. [Billboard]

Funnest Tour Ever: Logo sponsors this summer’s True Colors Tour, kicking off May 31 in Boston and featuring headliners Cyndi Lauper and the B-52s, with feature appearances by Joan Jett! Don’t pretend you’re too cool. [Billboard]