File this under movies that write themselves. Deadline reports that Disney has picked up a script from  Ahmet Zappa and Michael Wilson called Monster Witness Relocation Program. While no official casting details have been announced, the film is being developed with Jaden Smith in mind. Read the full story

Disney has picked up Tron Legacy director Joseph Kosinski‘s next project, Oblivion, which tells of “a future Earth, where civilization lives above the clouds and scavengers collect ancient artifacts from the polluted surface below. When one young scavenger finds a crashed spacecraft planetside, it lead him on a journey filled with romance and adventure.” [THR]

Kosinski has found producers in Radical Comics, with Barry Levine and Jesse Berger credited as such. The comics company has published the graphic novel of the same name, which has Kosinski credited as “creator” and Arvid Nelson and Andree Wallin credited as writer and artist, respectively.

Below is some of the artwork [First Showing]:

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There’s not much to say, except that the people behind Tron Legacy have yet to step wrongly in promotion. After what is now years of successful Comic-Con appearances, a couple of impressive trailers and a maintained group of fans awaiting its December 17th release.

Here’s an international poster to add more fuel to the fire (courtesy of First Showing):

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San Diego Comic-Con 2010 is in full effect and a flurry of movie news, trailers and announcements are splashing across social media networks of the world. Tron Legacy, one of the most anticipated films of the year, has jumped into the mix by exclusively debuting the second theatrical trailer at the world’s largest convention for geeks, gamers and cinephiles. Luckily our friends over at Yahoo have secured the exclusive trailer for online viewing pleasure so you can witness the glory. So without further ado, behold a new glimpse at what might be the cinematic experience of the year.

Watch below:

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Never say Brit director Joe Wright isn’t ambitious. Between Pride and Prejudice, Atonement and even the stunning artistic failure that is The Soloist, Wright’s always trying to exceed his boundaries. Now he wants to direct a live-action adaptation of the Disney classic The Little Mermaid. Now, that’s a boundary extension for sure.

It’s all set up at Working Title (who produced Pride and Atonement) and will take more from the original fairytale by Hans Christian Andersen, based on an adaptation from Abi Morgan. So, by all accounts, this thing is actually in development and being considered. [The Playlist]

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A year before its June 2011 release, Pixar pioneer John Lasseter has officially returned to Pixar to help bring Cars 2 to the silver screen, because “there have been story problems that needed to be addressed.” [First Showing]

Lasseter, you’ll remember, directed the original Cars which, despite generally lukewarm reviews, was a massive success both in theaters and toy stores across the world. He also directed the first two Toy Story films, if you guys remember those.

Brad Lewis was (and is) in line to direct the Cars sequel. Lewis has been an accredited producer for Pizar over the past few years, and this would be his directorial debut. What this means for Lewis and his exact credit on the film, it’s hard to say. The man’s still working on the film, “side by side” with Lassester now.

This, by all accounts, is a good thing. Lasseter was their at the beginning and as such has most likely encountered every problem an animator can come across. Expect Cars 2 to come out exactly the way Pixar wants it to. How good that will be is whole other ballgame.

Have you seen Cars? What did/do you think of it?

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Don Hahn, producer of classics such as Who Framed Roger Rabbit and Beauty And The Beast has revealed to Empire that Disney favorite The Lion King will be returning to the big screen in 3D.

Hahn, who was also the producer for The Lion King, was recently in London to visit pre-production on Tim Burton’s next movie, Frankenweenie, set to shoot soon at Three Mill Studios. It was there that he spoke of the expected return of The Lion King:

“I’m actually trying to work out a 3D conversion of The Lion King. I’ll be doing that when I go back to the States in a couple of weeks,” he said, explaining that we shouldn’t expect to see it for a while yet, since the Disney boffins are taking their time in making Simba, Zazu et al pop out of the screen. “It’s going to be spectacular – we will do a good job for ya! The technology is tremendous. We did A Nightmare Before Christmas a few years ago and Tim thought it was better than the original because it allows you to walk onto the set.”

With Beauty and the Beast already being converted into 3D, along with every other movie that could possibly be squeezed of its last drops of monetary honey, it comes as no surprise that Disney would want to add The Lion King to the 3D bandwagon. Hopefully they can work some magic to create a more spectacular 3D out of this wonderful classic film, rather than just a weak holographic effect that adds nothing to the experience except an annoying pair of glasses on your face.

In related news, Hahn confirmed that the long-awaited sequel to Who Framed Roger Rabbit is still in the works: “Yeah, I couldn’t possibly comment. I deny completely, but yeah… if you’re a fan, pretty soon you’re going to be very, very, very happy.”

Sadly, Hahn also revealed that The Snow Queen, an adaptation of a classic Hans Christian Andersen fairy tale that was rumoured to be Disney’s next hand-drawn animation won’t be developed in the foreseeable future:

“It’s actually been tabled right now,” explains Hahn. “It’s on the low shelf – we can’t reach it! But seriously, we don’t have the story. It’s a bit like Beauty And The Beast, which sat there for years. We cracked Beauty finally by putting in the objects and creating more plot. The Snow Queen we’ve had a lot of trouble with and I’ve spent years on it. I love it and I think it’s one of the last great fairy tales. It’s kind of crappy that it’s just sitting there right now.”

For now, the next Disney film to come out will be Tangled, the updated version of Rapunzel, which will hit cinemas this year on November 24.

What do you think of The Lion King returning to the cinemas in 3D?

Bradley Cooper, coming off his shirtless performance in The A-Team, has been linked to an upcoming Disney baseball flick. [THR]

The untitled project was pitched as a dramedy by writer Allan Loeb, whose Wall Street sequel comes out in September. It has a fairly standard premise:

[The film] centers on a baseball player who gets injured and has to go back to the minors where the only place he can find lodging is in a senior citizens’ home. There, he meets an old baseball guru who helps lead him back.

It’s difficult to mix drama and baseball well; it’s only been done a handful of times with any success (Field Of Dreams, The Rookie). So it is hard to say how much of a “dramedy” this actually is and how much was just a pitch to get a movie made. To me it feels more in the vein of a pure comedy with a small sentimental backbone (e.g. A League Of Their Own). Or, perhaps, something like Bull Durham. Only time will tell.

Is this a good move for Cooper? Can he act with his shirt on?

Walt Disney Pictures has revealed the teaser trailer for Tangled, a revamped version of the Disney classic Rapunzel. The film is directed by Byron Howard and Nathan Greno. Check out the trailer after the cut. Read the full story