Close to Home: Hilary Swank has signed on to star in Hammer Films’ The Resident in a role that pits her against her landlord. Antti J. Jokinen will make his directing debut for the script that he wrote with Robert Orr. The story revolves around a doctor who moves into a swanky Brooklyn loft only to discover that her landlord is a stalker, which actually comes in handy when she needs her heating fixed. [Variety
Branding Arthur: Necklace-wearing Brit Russell Brand is developing a remake of Dudley Moore’s Arthur for Warner Bros. The original 1981 movie focused on a drunk playboy who will inherit a fortune if he marries an heiress who can set him on the right track it. Instead, the hard-partying Arthur falls in love with a working-class gal. Given the title character’s vices (booze, women, and booze), Brand may have a hard time nailing the role. [HR]
It Lives, Again: Strike Entertainment is developing a remake of John Carpenter’s 1988 sci-fi satire They Live. The original told the story of a regular guy, played by wrestler Roddy Piper, who discovers a pair of glasses that allow him to see the aliens living among and controlling humans. He must then fight to save humankind and utter the classic line, “I have come here to chew bubblegum and kick ass … and I’m all out of bubblegum.†No roles have been cast, but we think the tradition of using wrestlers as leads is one that can safely be abandoned. [HR]
As Real As They Wanna Be: Ageless celebrity couple Lisa Rinna and Harry Hamlin are making a reality show with TV Land. The program will follow the couple and their two daughters though life as they go to the tanning bed and have foreign substances injected into their lips. [HR]
The Critic Kid: Paramount has nabbed the rights to a November 17 Times article about an aspiring food critic on the Upper West Side who happens to be 12 years old. To be produced by Lorne Michaels and John Goldwyn, the film will focus on David Fishman, a kid who’s charmed his way into posh restaurants and keeps his critiques in a private journal. [Variety]
Romancing the Remake: In more remake news, Fox is planning on updating Romancing the Stone and Daniel McDermott has been tapped to write the screenplay. The original told the story of a romance novelist who travels to South American to find her missing sister. Instead she finds an American solider who embarks on a cross-country adventure with her. It also helped launch the careers of Robert Zemeckis, Michael Douglas, Danny DeVito, and Kathleen Turner, who are all likely too old and wrinkly to factor into this version. [Variety]