Although director Francis Lawrence declared a prequel to his 2007 hit I Am Legend completely dead last year, it looks like he was mistaken. Deadline reports that deals have just been closed between Warner Bros. and producer Akiva Goldsman and Overbrook Entertainment for another Legend.

The hope is to get Will Smith to return to role as Robert Neville, the scientist who [SPOILERS] sacrifices himself for the betterment of humankind during the finale. That film brought in an insane worldwide gross of almost $600 million, so it is no surprise they want another iteration. The major questions comes with how they will continue the story as it is reportedly “not being called a prequel,” despite the rumors.

Arash Amel (who has the Aaron Eckhart-starring action thriller The Expatriate coming out this year with) has been hired to write the script. Lawrence is currently not involved and Smith won’t sign on without liking the script though. I can’t imagine he’d be happy if this turns into another Men In Black III fiasco, with a studio pushing for a massive budget sequel they weren’t completely prepared for. Stay tuned as we got updates on where this story is headed.

Where do you think a new I Am Legend film could go?