Superspy Panda: Jack Black is reteaming with his Kung Fu Panda writers, Jonathan Aibel and Glenn Berger, on an untitled live-action comedy for Universal. Described as a “comedic Bourne Identity,†the story follows a guy with amnesia who washes ashore on Cuba and concludes that he must be some kind of superspy. Says Aibel: “For our next live-action project, we knew we wanted to work with either a panda or Jack.†[HR]
Cats & Dogs and O’Donnell: Chris O’Donnell and 30 Rock’s comedic savant genius Jack McBrayer will play the live-action leads in Warner Bros.’ Cats & Dogs: The Revenge of Kitty Galore. Sequel continues where the first movie left off, with cats and dogs battling for control of our planet, and movie critics battling to see who can write the most dismissive review. [HR]
Betty Anne Swank: Hilary Swank is starring in Betty Anne Waters for Omega Entertainment, the true story of a single mother who worked her way through law school in an effort to free her wrongfully imprisoned brother. Like Legally Blonde, but with absolutely no jokes. [Variety]
Sheen in Wonderland: Michael Sheen, who’s twice portrayed Tony Blair onscreen (The Deal, The Queen), will appear in Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland. He’ll also be co-starring with Samuel L. Jackson in Unthinkable, the movie about torturing a terrorist who’s suspected of planning a nuclear attack. For both movies, our best guess is he’ll be playing … Tony Blair? [Variety]
Angel Heart Redux: Michael De Luca is producing a remake of 1987’s Mickey Rourke supernatural thriller, Angel Heart. The original — notable for, we guess, being super sexy? — also starred Robert De Niro and Lisa Bonet, although De Luca plans to use the original novel as his source material, since it has “compelling, universal themes and a rare combination of literary and commercial appeal.†Oh, and tons of sex. [Variety]