Darren Aronofsky May Shoot Down ROBOCOP to Swim with Natalie Portman on BLACK SWAN

In recent weeks, Darren Aronofsky’s commitment to directing a remake of “Robocop” for MGM had come into question but he was reportedly still attached the project.  While he had not officially signed on to direct that remake, he was the presumptive choice and had previously voiced his interest in that project.  Today, however, THR is reporting that Aronofsky may have shuffled his priorities and is moving to Fox Searchlight in order to direct the indie-thriller, “Black Swan” starring Natalie Portman.  To learn more about these intriguing developments, hit the jump.

While THR won’t go as far to say that Aronofsky is off the project, they’re noting that putting “Black Swan” first makes his commitment to “Robocop” a fairly tight fit.  However, they don’t answer my question which is how Natalie Portman’s schedule works.  She still has producing duties for “Hesher”, she’s currently filming “Your Highness” and she’s signed on to do “Important Artifacts…” with Brad Pitt and an quirky independent film called, I believe, “Thor”.  So when does she have time to do “Black Swan”?  THR notes that MGM could hold off on filming “Robocop” till summer 2010 and still make their 2011 target release date.  Still, it’s not like MGM is hurting for material as they have “Bond 23″ coming up as well as Guillermo del Toro’s two-part adaptation of “The Hobbit”.

But whichever project Aronofsky chooses, that film and that studio will be lucky to have him because he is simply one of the best directors working today.