The Weekly Ketchup: Dueling "Batman" Villains, Peter Jackson Talks "Hobbit," Brad Pitt "M:I4" Rumors, And More!

by Nick Hershey | September 22, 2006

In this week’s Ketchup, as if the who-will-portray-Joker rumors weren’t enough, the who-will-portray-Two-Face conversation is in full swing. Also, Peter Jackson has now gone on record regarding his possible participation in "The Hobbit."

Feeding our hunger for more annoying rumors, Brad Pitt‘s name is being floated around for "Mission: Impossible 4," Steven Spielberg might helm a fourth version of "Jurassic Park," and we get to look at what "Iron Man" won’t look like (oh joy!). Read on for more.

This Week’s Most Popular News:

Guy Pearce vs. Liev Schreiber for "The Dark Knight"?
Now that we know who’s playing The Joker in "The Dark Knight" (it’s Heath Ledger), all the Batfan speculation is now pointed towards the character of Harvey "Two Face" Dent. Previous buzz indicated that Liev Schreiber was "the guy," but now there’s a new name invovled: Christopher Nolan’s old pal Guy Pearce.

Peter Jackson Discussing "The Hobbit"!!
And by "discussing" I mean "talking to AICN’s ‘Quint’ about the possibility of MGM mounting a pair of Hobbit films," as was mentioned in an article earlier this week. Again: There is nothing to indicate that Peter Jackson is (or will be) connected to a "Hobbit" movie; only that MGM has announced some tentative plans … and that Pete shared a conversation about those plans.

Brad Pitt as Ethan Hunt?
Well, we all know that Paramount’s not really interested in the Tom Cruise business anymore, but JoBlo’s sharing a piece of gossip from across the pond that might not be true — but it is kinda fun. Unsubstantiated buzz indicates that Paramount wants none other than Brad Pitt to step into the lead for "Mission: Impossible 4."

Will Spielberg Return to Helm "Jurassic Park 4"?
Steven Spielberg has said several very flattering things about the work Joe Johnston did on "Jurassic Park 3," but recent chit-chat seems to indicate that S.S. might be interested in stepping back into the director’s chair (if and when) "JP4" starts moving forward.

Wanna See What "Iron Man" WON’T Look Like?
It’s probably way too early to see any actual production art for Jon Favreau’s "Iron Man" adaptation, but that hasn’t stopped a few (talented) fans from putting together some "unapproved" mock-ups of the character.

But would he stay in Paramount’s good graces?

In Other News:

Paul Haggis ("Crash") will direct Tommy Lee Jones and Charlize Theron in "The Garden of Elah."

Sony Pictures Classics has acquired the rights to Paul Verhoeven‘s "Black Book," the Dutch entry for the 2006 Academy Awards.

Angelina Jolie will portray Dagney Taggart in the film adaptation of the Ayn Rand novel "Atlas Shrugged."

After the success of the "Pirates of the Caribbean" movies, Disney is now focusing on turning the "Jungle Cruise" into a film franchise.

Katie Cassidy is joining the cast of the "Revenge of the Nerds" remake, and will portray a sorority girl. She will also appear in the "Dallas" big screen adaptation, playing Lucy Ewing.

"The Mummy" and "Van Helsing" director Stephen Sommers will produce and direct "Nightmare Academy" for Universal Pictures.

Drew Barrymore plans to star in as well as produce the Warner Bros. thriller "He Loves Me."

Johnny Depp reportedly will star in "Rex Mundi" based on the graphic novels of the same name by Arvid Nelson and Eric Johnson. The screenplay is a project of "Fight Club" writer Jim Uhls.

Lisa Kudrow and Jeffrey Dean Morgan have joined the already cast Hilary Swank and Gerard Butler in the film "P.S. I Love You."

Ron Howard‘s production company is in talks to acquire film rights to Peter Morgan’s stage play "Frost/Nixon."

George Clooney is set to direct and star in the football film "Leatherhead." Renee Zellweger is in talks to co-star.

Nia Vardalos has received permission from the Greek government to shoot part of her Tom Hanks-produced "My Life in Ruins" in the classical ruins of The Acropolis in Athens.

Bennett Miller (director of "Capote") will direct "The Immortalist" for Paramount Vantage.

John Hurt is set to star in "Oxford Murders" based on the award-winning novel by Argentinean scribe Guillermo Martinez.

IFC Films has acquired North American rights to the mob comedy "You Kill Me," starring Ben Kingsley, Tea Leoni, and Luke Wilson.

Aisha Tyler will star with Kevin Bacon in the vigilante drama "Death Sentence."

New Line Cinema has acquired "God, the Devil and Lucy," a comedy in which God and the Devil take human form to compete for the affections of a mortal woman.

Diane Keaton, Dax Shepherd, and Liv Tyler will star in the indie film "Smother" for Inferno Distribution.

Jesse Bradford is set to star opposite Elisha Cuthbert in "My Sassy Girl," a remake of the hit Korean romantic comedy.

And finally, Sven Nykvist, the Oscar-winning Swedish filmmaker who served as cinematographer on many of Ingmar Bergman‘s most revered films, died Wednesday after a long illness at the age of 83.