1.) Legendary Pictures is currently targeting Aaron Johnson (Kick-Ass, Savages) to star in their “gritty” new reboot of Godzilla. I mentioned a few days ago Joseph Gordon-Levitt was the first actor to get an offer for the role, though he passed on it back in the fall. A recent shortlist included the names of Henry Cavill (Man of Steel), Scoot McNairy (Argo, Killing Them Softly) and Caleb Landry Jones (Contraband, X-Men: First Class). While a reunion between McNairy and director Gareth Edwards seems enticing since Monsters was the film that put both of them on the map, that shortlist now looks like old news. With shooting expected to begin in March and a May 16, 2014 release already announced, a deal should come shortly and it sounds like Johnson could very well be their man. [Deadline]
2.) Though he has been attached to the project for months, Ben Affleck has now confirmed Live By Night will be his next writing/directing vehicle, telling MTV the film’s timetable was the reason behind dropping out of the Kristen Stewart grifter romance Focus. Live By Night brings Affleck back to familiar territory as he adapts another novel from Gone Baby Gone author Dennis Lehane. This one is a prohibition-era crime drama set in – you guessed it – Boston.
3.) Steven Spielberg has clarified the recently reported delays surrounding Robopocalypse. “We found that the film was costing a lot of money and I found a better way to tell the story more economically but also much more personally,” he told Entertainment Weekly. “I found the personal way into Robopocalypse, and so I just old everybody to go find other jobs, I’m starting on a new script and we’ll have this movie back on its feet soon.” There’s no new timeline for when the film might shoot, but he estimated the delay could set them back six to eight months. The film was originally set to film this summer for an April 2014 release date, so there’s a chance we could be looking at Robopocalypse as a 2014 holiday release.
4.) Ellen Page is attached to star in an adaptation of Jean Hegland‘s post-apocalyptic novel Into the Forest. The book centers on two sisters struggling to survive after as society begins to decay and collapse around them. There’s no mention of a screenwriter or director, so this one is likely still a long way off. [Jeff Sneider]
5.) New Line is moving forward with their remake of the 1979 caper flick Going in Style, attaching D0n Scardino to direct. Scardino has worked mostly in television to this point, directing episodes of everything from “Cosby” to “The West Wing” to “30 Rock,” but he now has the amusing-looking The Incredible Burt Wonderstone arriving in theaters on March 15. Martin Brest, who has been out of work since Gigli, directed the original Going in Style. It starred George Burns, Art Carney and Lee Strasberg as geriatrics who are bored with their lives, so they decide to rob a bank. [Deadline]
