They’ve Made a Huge Mistake: Mitch Hurwitz and Ron Howard have closed deals to finally resurrect Arrested Development from the TV trash heap. Series creator Hurwitz is onboard to write and direct the film, with a little help from Howard, who would also presumably narrate. Original soundtrack to be recorded by Dr. Fünke’s 100% Natural Good-Time Family-Band Solution. [HR]
The Book of Mila: Mila Kunis has joined Denzel Washington in his quest to save The Book of Eli. The Warner Bros. action-thriller centers on the loner Eli (Washington) who must fight across a wasteland of America to protect a sacred book that holds the key to saving humanity. Kunis will play a woman who starts as an enemy of Eli’s but ultimately joins his cause. Because with a face like Denzel’s, how could anyone be his enemy? [HR]
Bourne Again: Universal Pictures has struck a deal with the estate of Bourne author Robert Ludlum that gives the studio exclusive rights to Jason Bourne and a first look at all other Ludlum novels. The deal paves the way for more Bourne pics, which were originally imagined as a trilogy but are now being positioned as Universal’s answer to Bond films. Matt Damon and Paul Greengrass are currently onboard to star in and direct the fourth Bourne, out in 2008. So who takes over Bourne when Damon gets too old? Maybe Haley Joel Osment? He’s got nothing else to do. [Variety]
It’s a Deal: Warner Brothers has signed a three-year first look deal with Get Smart director Peter Segal and his partner, Michael Ewing. The duo will start with Liam McBain: International Tennis Star and Proper English Geezer, a comedy that follows the rise, fall, and eventual redemption of a fictional eighties British tennis star. [Variety]
What’s the Matter With Kansas?: Timothy Olyphant is set to star in The Crazies, a Breck Eisner remake of George Romero’s 1973 horror flick. Olyphant will play the sheriff of a small Kansas town where a plane crash lets loose a biological weapon, driving the townsfolk to go insane, die, and elect Sam Brownback to the United States Senate. [HR]
Hoppy Returns: 300 producer Mark Canton has teamed up with Pterodactyl Productions on a pair of moves that revive classic cowboy Bill “Hopalong†Cassidy. The projects will feature a modern revival of the cowboy who William Boyd played in 66 films throughout the thirties, forties, and fifties. “We’re looking to ring in the modern age with a branded, well-loved hero that we approach in a fresh way,†Canton said. Plus, if there’s one sure thing at the box office these days, it’s a western. [Variety]