With Dark Knight‘s Chris Nolan on to produce and David S. Goyer writing the script, WB is making a new Superman movie with plans to release in 2012.  The other day I reported on the shortlist of possible directors, which included five names.  Apparently someone out there doesn’t know what a shortlist is, because now there’s one more: Wrestler director Darren Aronofsky.  …Sort of.

Now there’s talk that he could make his studio debut with a different classic property: Superman.  Christopher Nolan has had discussions with Aronofsky about the job, sources say. …the idea would be to bring Aronofsky’s auteur sensibility to the comic book mythology.

You hear that?  There’s talk.  Hypothetical talk.  This is truly exciting news.

This isn’t the first comic book property that Aronofsky has been rumored for, as the filmmaker is reportedly one of 20th Century Fox’s first choices to direct the sequel to “X-Men Origins: Wolverine.” When MTV News asked Aronofsky about the rumor at the Toronto International Film Festival earlier this month, the director played coy.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” he said about possibly directing the “Wolverine” sequel. “There are a lot of projects out there and I haven’t really focused on anything yet.”
While none of us knew about the “Superman” rumors at the time, Aronofsky nonetheless revealed that he’s familiar with the character and would be interested in getting on board a comic book adaptation at some point in the future.
“Of course, I grew up with Batman and Superman and Spider-Man a little bit, but I’m not the biggest comic book fan, even though I’ve been attached to a lot of them,” he said. “It would be fun to do one, [but] it’s just finding the right situation, the right project.” [MTV]

Darren Aronofsky has heard of Superman?  Oh my gosh, this is fantastic news.  Who knows what dreams may become reality now that this important discovery has come to light.  You know people on the internet are nerds when a guy makes a movie where Natalie Portman masturbates on a bed in the trailer and all people ask him about are comic books.

More awesome title: Wrestler director or wrestler/director?  Discuss.

Last week, the directing job on Fox’s Wolverine 2 was reportedly down to Twilight Eclipse’s David Slade and Robert Schwentke (Time Traveler’s Wife, Red). Today, Deadline reports that Slade is still the front runner, but now says Darren Aronofsky (The Wrestler, Pi) is also in the mix.  Which is weird, because he generally seems drawn to projects that are… good.

20th Century Fox is between David Slade and Darren Aronofsky, I’m told. Slade, who just directed the summer hit The Twilight Saga: Eclipse, met over the weekend with Hugh Jackman on location where he is shooting Real Steel for DreamWorks. Aronofsky has also been talking with Jackman, and they have a good relationship that dates back to The Fountain.  Aronofsky has some momentum of his own because of Black Swan, I’d say Slade has the edge.

Aronofsky has never done a sequel before, let alone one that reeks of someone else’s musk.  I’m assuming the paycheck is good, because this just seems like a thankless job.  Gavin Hood was coming off an Oscar when he took Wolverine and look what happened.  I’d be interested to see what a Darren Aronofsky Wolverine would look like, but Fox has a knack for making good directors look terrible.  In much the same way that they can make Martin Lawrence look like a fat lady in Big Mommas: Like Father Like Son, coming this Spring from Fox. (Not a joke).

It’s Friday, so I broke some stories into spicy, bite-sized nuggets.

Twilight Eclipse director David Slade is the leading candidate to direct Wolverine 2. According Vulture, it’s down to Slade or Flightplan/Time Traveler’s Wife director Robert Schwentke (and this guy still gets work why?).  Hugh Jackman will make the final decision after he meets with them next week. “A well-placed source inside the production insists, ‘It’s going to be Slade.’”  I’m guessing Slade will spend most of this week on the phone saying, “Yeah, sure, Hugh, I could definitely see Wolverine exploring his love of musical theater, great idea.” |Vulture|

Carla Gugino in negotiations to star in MILF. …Which stands for “Mothers I’d Like to Fight” — “a revenge story about a woman who, recently released from prison, returns to the street to take care of some unfinished business.”  Speaking of unfinished business, it looks like I’ve got some of my own.  I came here to chew bubble gum and wank dismissively, and I’m all out of bubble gum. |LATimes|

A guy committed suicide at a Swell Season show last night. Swell Season is the folk rock duo of Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova from that movie Once, and at a show last night in Saratoga, CA, a guy climbed onto the roof three stories above the stage and jumped just as the band was finishing a song, landing three feet from Hansard. Their music isn’t really my cup of tea, but Glen Hansard once said something nice about FilmDrunk on Twitter, so I won’t make the obvious joke here. Anyway, it’s a sad story, and I can only hope Olivia Munn doesn’t do any live readings of her book so it doesn’t get repeated. |SFWeekly|

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Accoring to Deadline, Hugh Jackman has dropped out of Avon Man.  It’s a shame, because from what we’ve heard, this had the potential to be the finest film of all time.

Story follows men laid off from an auto dealership. One is reluctantly recruited into becoming an Avon salesman, and while the experience is initially emasculating, he uses his charm and good looks to become a top seller. The comedy takes on a “Full Monty” vibe when the car salesman sets out to save his financially strapped family and town by conscripting his buddies into the makeup business to win a regional contest.

I tried to read that out loud, but when I opened my mouth, the only sound that came out was a slide whistle.  Also keep in mind, Jackman dropped out of Avon Man while on the set of Real Steel, the film in which he trains a robot to box.  If his choices seem strange, that’s because his six-year-old daughter’s birthday wish was for him to do only the movies she chose for an entire year, and the wish was sealed with a genie’s kiss.  Can Hugh Jackman win back her love??

Yadda yadda yadda, now he’s getting in shape for Wolverine 2.

Jackman will spend the late fall getting in killer shape to reprise his role as Logan in a sequel to X-Men Origins: Wolverine. That film is being scripted by Christopher McQuarrie [Usual Suspects, Valkyrie] and tells a samurai story set in Japan. There is no director, but Jackman’s move means that Fox is getting the film ready for production next year.

You hear that??? WOLVERINE 2, YOU GUYS!  ….Whoa.  Even the crickets are dismissively wanking.

(I don’t remember why I made this Photoshop)

This week brought some news about Wolverine 2, coming ironically from Roger Friedman, the slug-person who once got fired for admitting he watched a pirated copy of Wolverine (he also once wrote that Matt LeBlanc had “literally disappeared” and was still allowed to show up for work the next day, but I digress).  Aaaaanyway, Friedman reports that the sequel to X-Men Origins: Wolverine, will begin filming in Japan in January, from a script by Usual Suspects writer Chris McQuarrie.  Wha??  The trained seals at Fox hired someone qualified?  Oh well, I guess it’s true what they say about even a blind squirrel busting a nut.  I think that’s how it goes.

No director has been signed. And the script is a little different than originally thought. Based on a story cycle by Frank Miller and Chris Claremont, Wolverine’s adventures in martial arts will be a love story featuring a Japanese actress, I am told. “It’s a beautiful story,” says a source, “and will be very different than the first film.”
In addition to “Wolverine in Japan,” don’t worry. There are plenty of X-Men movies on the drawing boards. The next one [X-Men First Class] will bring back director Bryan Singer, who made the first two films. [via Friedman's column]

So Chris McQuarrie and Bryan Singer for Wolverine and X-Men… but also Fox?  I don’t know how to feel about that.  It’s like finding out you’re having steak for dinner, but your retarded brother who plays with his wiener all day is going to cook it.

(picture came from here, BUT FOR THE LOVE OF GOD, DO NOT CLICK THAT {highly NSFW} LINK)