Tarnished 'Compass' That startlingly abrupt, ripe-for-the-sequel ending of "The Golden Compass" might have been for naught: Author Phillip Pullman confirms he has not been contacted about an adaptation of his followup novel, "The Amber Spyglass." Director Chris Weitz had been determined to make a sequel, but disappointing box office dampened that chatter soon out of the gate. All we can say to the filmmakers is chop chop, or find yourself a new Lyra Belacqua -- the delightful Dakota Blue Richards, 14, is not getting any younger.
The final reel Brad Pitt and Leonardo DiCaprio are on the short list to star in Quentin Tarantino's World War II film "Inglorious Bastards." ... Danny DeVito will direct his screenplay "The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle," an 1832 high-seas adventure starring Saoirse Ronan, Pierce Brosnan and Morgan Freeman. ... Blake Edwards has sold the rights to his 1979 movie "10" for a planned remake. ... Tobey Maguire will star in "The Crusaders," based on the landmark 1954 Brown vs. Board of Education case. ... Sacha Baron Cohen will produce and perhaps star in "Accidentes," about an ambulance-chasing personal injury lawyer. ... "Hancock" director Peter Berg is taking on a less contemporary superhero: Hercules. ... David Wain, director of 2001's "Wet Hot American Summer," hints that he is dreaming up a prequel that would star the same (!) cast, including Paul Rudd and Michael Ian Black, as their younger selves. ... Wesley Strick, screenwriter for "Arachnophobia" and "Cape Fear," has been signed to create a new version of "A Nightmare on Elm Street."
CYNTHIA DICKISON
