The feature film adaptation of the Dark Horse comic Beasts of Burden now has a director.  Created by Eisner-award winners Evan Dorkin and Jill Thompson, Beasts of Burden is set in the unassuming little town of Burden Hill. When supernatural events start to occur, it’s up to a group of dogs (and one cat) to protect their owners from the forces of evil.  A couple of years ago, Shrek and Chronicles of Narnia director Andrew Adamson came aboard to produce the animated Reel FX project, and now The Wrap reports that 9 director Shane Acker has been tapped to take the helm.

Though 9 wasn’t a runaway box office success, it was a decidedly different entry in the world of animation as Acker’s dark and innovative tone helped the film stand out amongst the more colorful family fare.  Darren Lemke (Shrek Forever After) is writing the script for Beasts of Burden, and with Acker now onboard we can likely assume that this won’t be your average cutesy talking animals movie.  Hit the jump to read a synopsis for the comic.

As Columbia Pictures continues to develop its adaptation of the horror series Goosebumps, they’re set to go back to the drawing board. The project has seen a number of writers take a crack at the script (including Carl Ellsworth), but now Heat Vision reports that Darren Lemke is coming aboard to start fresh. Lemke wrote the spec script for Jack the Giant Killer, which Bryan Singer directed and is set to open this summer. The scribe also wrote a re-imagining of The Nutcracker and worked on Shrek Forever After.

If you’re unfamiliar with the book series, author R.L. Stine wrote over 50 books under the Goosebumps moniker that successfully gave me night terrors throughout the early-mid 90s (who am I kidding, Say Cheese and Die still haunts me to this day). There’s no word on what kind of story Columbia is looking for, but seeing as how Lemke is starting from scratch, I’m willing to bet they’re not entirely sure either. To get an idea of what a live-action Goosebumps looks like, hit the jump for a couple clips from the 90s TV series. Beware of terrifying cheese…

Nicholas Hoult is set to star in Bryan Singer’s Jack the Giant Killer.  The story is a darker spin on the fairy tale of “Jack and the Beanstalk”.  In this re-telling, Jack is on a mission to rescue a princess from the kingdom of the giants. Earlier this week, we reported that casting was ramping up and that Stanley Tucci would play the film’s villain Roderick while Bill Nighy would play one of the two heads of two-headed leader of the giants (the other is played by John Kassir).  Deadline reports that Hoult got on Singer’s radar after being cast as Beast in X-Men: First Class, which Singer is producing.

Hit the jump for more on Hoult.

Bryan Singer’s Jack the Giant Killer has been green lit by New Line Cinema, and Singer is currently looking at actors to take the lead. Deadline reports that Aaron Johnson, with fantastic recent performances in Kick-Ass and Nowhere Boy, is a favorite, but other actors are still being looked at.

Written by Darren Lemke and Mark Bomback, Jack the Giant Killer is a dark version of the classic fairy tale of Jack and the Beanstalk.  Singer has been courting this project for some time, and is now seeing some major progress in its pre-production.  Hit the jump for more information on Singer’s other projects, including X-Men: First Class.

Everyone is off to see the Wizard these days.  Drew Barrymore is the latest to throw on a pair of ruby slippers as Pajiba reports that she’ll make Surrender Dorothy as the follow-up to her directorial debut, Whip It.  First announced in 2002, Barrymore was then attached to star in the Wizard of Oz-inspired flick that Zach Helm (Stranger Than Fiction) wrote. The actress/producer/director was originally going to play “the great, great granddaughter of Dorothy who has to learn how to use the power of those ruby red slippers to keep the Wicked Witch of the West from taking control of the kingdoms of Earth and Oz.”  But now that Barrymore is eight years older, I wonder if she’s going to take another role or just stick to directing/producing the film.

I liked Whip It although I think Barrymore should have given the film a harder edge.  Hit the jump to learn about the other Wizard of Oz-based movies currently in development.

Bryan Singer’s much anticipated Jack the Giant Killer and the Planet of the Apes prequel Caesar both  start filming in July. According to Production Weekly’s Twitter, Jack the Giant Killer is set to start filming in London and Iceland, and have set up production offices in Robertson plaza. Production Weekly also says Caesar will start filming in Burnaby, BC.  More after the jump:

Hollywood is certainly no stranger to the idea of remakes. With the success of the groundbreaking and visually charged three-dimensional films, Avatar and Alice in Wonderland, it seems that the desire to give classic films the 3-D makeover has quadrupled overnight.

Reportedly, Warner Bros. currently has two potential Wizard of Oz related projects in the works that they feel would benefit from a modern day revamping.  However, based on reliable sources (and Steve will say more after the jump), it seems that neither of the reported projects has actually seen any movement in over a year. Perhaps the success of the two aforementioned films will ultimately prove to be a catalyst for green lighting this project. Hit the jump for more on the projects reportedly in the works and to check out my opinion on the possible remake:

Darren Lemke, writer of the upcoming Shrek Forever After and Jack the Giant Killer, has a new action-adventure fairytale adaptation in the works: The Nutracker. Yes, based on the ballet. According to Heat Vision, New Line has picked up the project, which is being produced by Marty Bowen and Wyck Godfrey of Temple Hill Entertainment (New Moon, the upcoming adaptation of the popular video game Gears of War).

For those not up on their ballet, The Nutcracker follows a 12-year-old girl who receives a nutcracker doll as a gift from her godfather on Christmas Eve. But as the night wears on, the doll comes to life and becomes involved in a war against a Mouse King with seven heads. This won’t be the first time the story’s been turned into a film, but perhaps the first time on this large a scale. It’s unknown as of now exactly what form the adaptation will take–live action or animated.