Zookeeper: Matt Damon is in early talks to play the leading role in Cameron Crowe’s We Bought a Zoo, Fox’s adaptation of Benjamin Mee’s memoir (which Vulture told you about first). Damon would play Mee, who used his life savings to buy a dilapidated zoo “replete with 200 exotic animals facing destruction,†and who also must care for his wife who is dying from cancer. Unclear whether Damon’s well-coiffed mane will survive should he take the part. [HR]
360 Degrees: Fernando Meirelles (The Constant Gardener, City of God) has made a deal to direct 360, a drama written by Peter Morgan (The Queen, Frost/Nixon) about “sexual morals within and between social classes.†This is just screaming for Helen Mirren. [Deadline]
Hancock’s Wreck: AMC is nearing a deal to acquire The Wreck, a drama from The Blind Side director John Lee Hancock. The series is set in the “world of Southern college football,†focusing on the head coach of a once-legendary team that is coming off of a losing season. The school gives the coach “one last chance to turn the team into winners or he’s fired.†Meanwhile, Friday Night Lights whimpers to its close :( [HR]
Kid Stuff: David Bowers (Astro Boy, Flushed Away) will direct Diary of Wimpy Kid 2: Roderick Rules, his first live-action film and a sequel to the surprise hit Diary of a Wimpy Kid. Diary 2, also based on Jeff Kinney’s young-adult series, focuses on “put-upon kid†Greg Heffley, who must deal with the “punishments inflicted“ by his older brother Roderick. Sounds like real fun stuff! [HR]
Catfight: Syfy has cast eighties pop-star rivals Debbie Gibson and Tiffany in an original movie called Mega Python vs. Gatoroid. Gibson will play just another “fanatical animal-rights activist who frees illegally imported exotic snakes from pet stores†and Tiffany will play “an overzealous park ranger who uses dangerous methods to save endangered alligators.†The pair “brawl at a party, then take matters outside into the swamp.†Yes, this is somehow, inexplicably, amazingly real. [HR]
Teaming Up: Deerhoof and Xiu Xiu will hit the road together this fall, playing shows in the eastern part of North America in the beginning of October. Deerhoof will play a series of Xiu-less shows on their own before the joint outing. [Pitchfork]