Chris Pine may star in Mud, the new drama from Take Shelter writer-director Jeff Nichols.  24 Frames reports that Pine would play the title character, fugitive who encounters two 14-year-old boys who attempt to help him escape from an island in the Mississippi.  Rather than the hard-charging hero Pine has played in his recent films, Mud "is both an unsavory and a redemptive character and who teaches the boys as much as he learns from them."  Producer Aaron Ryder (Memento) says the film is in the vein of Stand By Me.  FilmDistrict, which has been cleaning up at Cannes, will distribute.Folks familiar with Pine's acclaimed work on stage will probably be less unsurprised to hear him talking on more serious dramatic work in films.  He's got a nice mix of action and drama coming up with the untitled Jack Ryan reboot churning through development, Star Trek 2 likely to shoot sometime this year, and Alex Kurtzman's family drama Welcome to People.  He'll next be seen in McG's action-comedy This Means War.  As for Nichols, some folks loved Take Shelter, but I thought it moved a bit too slowly and could use a bit of editing even though star Michael Shannon was electrifying.