Though film fans everywhere let out a sigh of relief when it was recently announced that Joss Whedon would be returning to write and direct The Avengers 2, a big question mark on Marvel’s upcoming slate remained.  Thor: The Dark World and Captain American: The Winter Soldier already have directors attached and are well on their way to production, but Guardians of the Galaxy—the studio’s sole original property on the Phase Two slate—was still without a director.

We recently learned that screenwriter Chris McCoy had been hired to rewrite the existing script by Nicole Perlman, and now comes word that Marvel has finally closed in on their director to bring the space-set superhero story to the big screen: James Gunn.  Hit the jump for more.

Two pieces of casting to report:

• Zoe Saldana will play legendary jazz vocalist/pianist Nina Simone in the biopic Nina, written and directed by Cynthia Mort (Tell Me You Love Me).
• Jake Gyllenhaal signed on to star in Mississippi Grind, a gambling drama written and directed by Ryan Fleck and Anna Boden (It’s Kind of a Funny Story).

Hit the jump for details on both projects.

Ryan Fleck and Anna Boden broke onto the scene in 2006 with their first feature screenplay Half Nelson. Helmed by Fleck, the film was released to widely positive acclaim and earned Ryan Gosling an Academy Award nomination for Best Actor. Now the two have settled on their next project, and character drama entitled Hate Mail. The film tells the interweaving stories of several New Yorkers who each receive hate mail, and the personal fallout that ensues. Fleck and Boden’s previous efforts include 2008’s Sugar and last year’s dramedy It’s Kind of a Funny Story. While Funny Story was a bit uneven, I was a huge fan of Half Nelson so it’s nice to hear the two have another project in the pipeline. Variety reports that casting is set to begin soon, with production poised to get going in spring 2012.

Pardon the very brief intro but I have only a few moments before I need to run off to see the premiere of James Gunn’s Super.

Just a few minutes ago I recorded a video blog with Peter from Slashfilm after watching writer/directors Ryan Fleck & Anna Boden (Half Nelson, Sugar) new movie It’s Kind of a Funny Story.  The film stars Keir Gilchrist, Zach Galifianakis and Emma Roberts and it’s about a stressed out teenager who decides to check himself into an institution after thinking he might kill himself.  Once inside, he begins to see things differently with the help of Galifianakis’ character and Emma Roberts.

Want to know what I think?  Hit the jump and watch the video:

The Bearded One, a.k.a. Bo, knows funny. Zach Galifianakis is nearing a deal to star in “It’s Kind of a Funny Story,” the next film from “Half-Nelson” writer-directors Ryan Fleck and Anna Boden. If he signs, “Story” would be the fourth film to feature Galifianakis coming out in the next few years, not counting his small role in Jason Reitman’s much talked about “Up in the Air.” He has already started filming Todd Phillips’ “Due Date” and is scheduled to shoot both Jay Roach’s “Dinner with Schmucks” and the sequel “Hangover 2″ (with Phillips again) next year. If you want to know more about Galifianakis’ newest project, sit yourself down between two ferns and hit the jump.