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A.I.: Jude Law ("The Talented Mr. Ripley") is in negotiations to topline Steven Spielberg's apocalyptic project "A.I." Haley Joel Osment ("The Sixth Sense") is also understood to be in talks to join the project. According to THR, Spielberg, who also wrote the "A.I." screenplay, plans to start production July 10th. The project, set in the future, tells the story of robots that possess artificial intelligence and live in a time when polar icecaps have melted, putting New York's skyscrapers under water.

Serendipity: John Cusack ("Pushing Tin") will star this summer in the romantic comedy "Serendipity." He'll play half of a couple who reunite a decade after the night they first met, fell in love and separated, convinced that one day they'd end up together. Variety reports that Peter Chelsom ("The Mighty") will direct.

Blow: A review of Nick Cassavetes' third draft rewrite of "Blow," dated August 27th, 1999. David McKenna ("American History X") wrote the initial draft, based on Bruce Porter's 1970's book "Blow: One Man's Life." Some spoilers. Thanks to Stax.

Blow - Script Review (Positive)

Untitled: The Oscar-winning "Fargo" trio of Joel and Ethan Coen and Frances McDormand are set to reunite in an untitled noirish drama shooting this summer. Joel Coen (who's married to McDormand) will direct, and Ethan Coen will produce. In the Coens-scripted project, McDormand's character is a philandering wife whose boyfriend turns up dead.

From Hell: Nigel Hawthorne ("The Madness of King George") is circling "From Hell," which stars Johnny Depp. The 20th Century Fox Jack the Ripper project, directed by Allen and Albert Hughes and produced by Don Murphy, is scheduled to go before cameras June 5 in Prague. According to THR, Hawthorne would play the Sir William Gull, the chief physician to the Queen.

Traffic: Erika Christensen, star of last season's short-lived CBS situation comedy "Thanks," has nabbed the plum part of Michael Douglas' drug-addicted teenage daughter, while Topher Grace ("That '70s Show") will portray a hard-core weekend substance abuser who draws her into his world of drugs and danger. Negotiations are ongoing for both actors, as well as for cast members Don Cheadle and Benecio Del Toro. Variety reports that production is slated to begin April 9.

Say It Isn't So: Orlando Jones ("Liberty Heights") has signed to star opposite Chris Klein ("Election") and Heather Graham in the TCF comedy "Say It Isn't So," to be produced by the Farrelly brothers. Directed by first-time helmer J.B. Rogers, "Say" is about a young bachelor (Klein) who finds the love of his life (Graham) but mistakenly believes she is his sister. Jones plays Klein's only friend, a legless pilot who speaks in a neo-beatnik patter. According to The Hollywood Reporter, production began Wednesday in Los Angeles and Vancouver.

Pluto Nash: Halle Berry has dropped out of Castle Rock's Eddie Murphy starrer "Pluto Nash" just weeks before the project was scheduled to start shooting under the direction of Ron Underwood ("Mighty Joe Young"). According to The Hollywood Reporter, Rosario Dawson ("Light It Up") is in final negotiations to replace Berry as the lead female in the futuristic good-vs.-evil story set on the moon. She'll play the lead role of a streetwise earthling whose club owner boyfriend (Murphy) struggles to protect his business from the mob.

Generation Ship: Rob Bowman ("The X-Files") is in final negotiations to direct the sci-fi epic "Generation Ship." Based on Harlan Ellison and Edward Bryant's sci-fi novel "Phoenix Without Ashes" that evolved from Ellison's short-lived 1970s Canadian TV series "The Starlost," "Ship" is set in the future and revolves around a Noah's Ark-type spaceship comprising hundreds of biospheres, each containing a sample culture from Earth that has evolved into its own separate world. Unbeknownst to the inhabitants, the spaceship was involved in an accident that killed the crew piloting it and has been coasting off-course for 5,000 years. Since each biosphere has seen generations come and go, no one knows that they are on a spaceship until one man accidentally stumbles upon the truth, realizing that they are all about to crash into an uncharted star. According to THR, the project could go into production at the end of the year.

A.I.: Steven Spielberg's next movie will indeed be the science fiction epic "A.I." Spielberg recently said that Stanley Kubrick had been developing it for nearly two decades before his death. The two men were close friends and Spielberg has described Kubrick as a valued mentor. "Stanley had a vision for this project that was evolving over 18 years," Spielberg said. "I am intent on bringing to the screen as much of that vision as possible along with elements of my own." Variety reports that work on "A.I." begins in July for a summer release in 2001.

Blade 2: Blood Hunt: Guillermo del Toro ("Cronos," "Mimic") will direct "Blade 2: Blood Hunt." Wesley Snipes is ready to reprise the title role, and Kris Kristofferson will come back as his mentor. The film is on track for a fall start and a potential summer 2001 release date. More >>>

Pearl Harbor: Kate Beckinsale ("Brokedown Palace") is in talks to assume the female lead in "Pearl Harbor." Variety reports that she would play a Navy nurse who meets Rafe (Ben Affleck) during a medical exam. After they fall in love, she is shipped off to sunny Pearl Harbor, to join the Pacific fleet - where nurses and the Navy thought they were as far as possible from the fighting.

The Patriot: In Line First informs me that a rough cut of "The Patriot" was screened last night at the Sony Backstage Theater in Los Angeles. ILF had a correspondent at the screening, and you can read his minor spoiler comments below:

The Patriot - Film Review/Editorial (Positive)

Heavy Metal: F.A.K.K.2 creator Kevin Eastman tell Comics 2 Film that the movie is scheduled to debut on the cable's Encore network July 10th. Although the movie retains the title Heavy Metal F.A.K.K.2, it is currently promoted as 'Heavy Metal 2000.' Eastman said the name change was prompted by the studio. "Columbia doesn't think anybody will understand what Fakk2 is, even though we've been promoting it for three years, or more, so they changed it to Heavy Metal 2000." The title change only applies to the marketing of the movie. "The title on-screen, the video game, most of the toys, and all the other things that were called Fakk2 before will stay Fakk2."

The Polar Express: Tom Hanks is set to produce and star in a Christmas movie based on "The Polar Express" a children's book by Chris Van Allsburg ("Jumanji"). The story concerns a boy who continues to believe in Santa Claus despite the skepticism of his friends. His faith is rewarded one Christmas Eve when he's awakened by a steam train that pulls up in front of his house and takes him and other children to the North Pole to meet Santa. Hanks will play the conductor of the Polar Express who takes the boy on the journey. "We will be meeting writers soon and intend to put this on a fast track," Castle Rock president Martin Shafer said. "It's a great book, one that Tom has always loved." Variety reports that the project will hit theaters around Christmas 2001.

Note: Wondering why you can't access Cinema Confidential today? The webmaster just told me that the site is down due to errors beyond his control, but should be up again tomorrow.

Traffic: Michael Douglas, the first to be offered the lead role, is reconsidering starring in Steven Soderbergh's "Traffic." Douglas would join his bride-to-be Catherine Zeta-Jones in the project, though the pair do not have any scenes together. The deal for Douglas is not done, but THR states that the actor would like to play the role of a district court judge who resigns his seat to become the U.S. drug czar, only to see his teenage daughter become addicted to crack cocaine and heroin.

Pearl Harbor: Alec Baldwin is in talks to star in "Pearl Harbor." According to THR, he would play Gen. James H. "Jimmy" Doolittle, a man appointed by Franklin D. Roosevelt to lead the air raid on Tokyo and across Japan four months after the bombing of Pearl Harbor. Doolittle later received the Congressional Medal of Honor and came home from the raid a hero. Also, newcomer James King has landed a supporting role. She auditioned for the lead female role, Michael Bay felt she was too young, but made her that character's best friend instead.

Afterlife: Andy Tennant ("Anna and the King") is in talks to direct and rewrite Joss Whedon's science-fiction thriller script "Afterlife" for Sony Pictures Entertainment. According to Variety, the story concerns a brilliant but ailing scientist whose imminent demise is staved off by a secret, company-sponsored brain transplant - unfortunately, into the body of an escaped serial killer. There is also a romantic dimension, with the newly mind-grafted hero seeking to reunite with his middle-aged wife, all the while fighting subconscious inclinations to go on a killing spree.

Shooter: The talent behind Paramount Pictures' upcoming "Rules of Engagement" may pair on another action thriller. Tommy Lee Jones is in negotiations and William Friedkin is in talks to direct "Shooter." The project, based on the Stephen Hunter novel "Point of Impact," is about an American war veteran who acted as a sniper. When he is pulled out of retirement by a CIA affiliate organization for one last assignment, he finds himself a patsy in a plot to assassinate the president. The project will first undergo a rewrite, but THR states that it could go before the cameras as early as the end of the summer.

Shipping News: Kevin Spacey ("American Beauty") is being pursued for the lead role in "Shipping News." Lasse Hallstrom will direct the adaptation of Annie Proulx' Pulitzer Prize-winning novel about a chaotic family. Variety reports that "Shipping News'' concerns a hard-luck newspaperman who survives an awful marriage to a wild woman who ran off with his two daughters and sold them into prostitution. The man saves the girls and moves with them to Newfoundland, where he takes a local newspaper job writing the shipping news and begins to find an identity for himself in the birthplace of his ancestors, discovering some dark family secrets along the way.

Keeping the Faith: Poster for the romcom "Keeping the Faith," starring Edward Norton, Ben Stiller and Jenna Elfman. Thanks to the official site.

Sprockets: Production designer Bo Welch will make his feature directing debut on "Sprockets." Variety reports that Mike Myers had considered directing the project himself, but settled on Welch because of his success in creating believable reality in otherworldly and highly visual films like "Pee-wee's Big Adventure," "Men in Black" and "Batman Returns."

Gangs of New York: Steve Zaillian ("Schindler's List") is working with Martin Scorsese on "Gangs of New York" starring Leonardo DiCaprio. The scribe and Scorsese worked closely on "Schindler's List" (before Steven Spielberg came aboard) and on a script about legendary gossip columnist Walter Winchell. According to THR, 'Gangs' will be distributed by Miramax domestically, and shooting starts next month in Rome.

Ocean's 11: A review of Ted Griffin's "Ocean's 11" rewrite, dated November 1st, 1999. Includes some spoilers. Thanks to Stax.

Ocean's 11 - Script Review (Positive)

A.I.: Variety's Army Archerd recently reported that although Steven Spielberg says no final decision has been made on his next pic, it looks more and more like it'll be “A.I” ("Artificial Intelligence"). Those who were attached to ready “Minority Report” are now freed and other regulars of the Spielberg team have been asked to be ready for a July 15th start of “A.I.” for DreamWorks/WB. In related news, Tom Cruise announced on Entertainment Tonight that "Minority Report" won't start filming until April or May 2001.. Thanks to Jawad.

The Matrix 2 & 3: Producer Joel Silver recently spoke with JAM! Showbiz about the "Matrix" sequels: "We are going to do Matrix 2 and Matrix 3 simultaneously. We are essentially going to make one giant movie that will be cut in half to make two smaller movies," says Silver. "We should begin shooting in the spring of 2001 in Australia and we'll be bringing all of the main characters who survived the first one back for the sequels." Silver admits Joe Pantoliano has been putting word out on Matrix websites that his character did not really die in the first movie. "Joe is convinced he didn't really die, but in the movie I saw he certainly did. He'll have to talk to the writers to see if they can work something out."

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