Some have questioned whether Disney overpaid when it bought Marvel Entertainment for $4 billion. After all, its best known Marvel Comics superhero franchises are parked at other studios, and Universal's Islands of Adventure is as dominated by Marvel attractions as it is Dr. Seuss.

But one thing to remember about Marvel assets is, they don't seem to wear out. We're about to see the second example where successful Marvel movie franchises are going to be reinvented. 

20th Century Fox is the latest studio to start the process of overhauling one of its big Marvel Entertainment franchises, “Fantastic Four,” which has already hatched two films. The studio has hired Akiva Goldsman to oversee the re-boot as producer.

New script will be written by Michael Green, the “Heroes” co-executive producer who co-wrote “Green Lantern,” the Martin Campbell-directed Warner Bros. film that will star Ryan Reynolds.  

Fox would not comment on its plans, and neither would Columbia Pictures when BFD revealed a couple weeks its plan to potentially re-boot the studio's most valuable franchise, "Spider-Man." 

With “Spider-Man 4” moving toward an early 2010 production start, the studio recently hired James Vanderbilt to write a fifth and sixth installment of the web-slinger franchise, with the understanding that one or both could give that franchise a makeover with a new director and cast (Daily Variety, Aug. 16, 2009). Whether director Sam Raimi and Tobey Maguire return or not, Sony smartly has given itself the chance to shorten the gap between its superhero installments.

And with state-of-the-art visual effects on superhero franchises pushing these pictures toward the $250 million-$300 million range, reshuffling the creative cast gives the studio a chance to save money, since actors and directors usually have a pre-negotiated option or two before the studio is held over a barrell by talent and their reps.

Marvel Studios has eliminated that problem by making talent sign as many as nine options, which was the case with the supporting cast of "Iron Man 2."

The 2005 “Fantastic Four” and 2007 sequel “Rise of the Silver Surfer” were directed by Tim Story, and starred Ioan Gruffud, Jessica Alba, Chris Evans and Michael Chiklis. Since the deals are just getting made, it is unclear at present if any of them will return. 

Though Marvel Entertainment owns and finances properties like “Iron Man” and “Thor,” Fox controls “Fantastic Four” in perpetuity—as long as it continues making the films. Fox has the same arrangement on Marvel Comics properties “X-Men,” “Daredevil,” and “Silver Surfer” --which, despite an appearance in the "Fantastic Four" sequel, is still a Fox priority for a solo film.

Marvel is a producer and financial participant through a licensing agreement signed before Marvel franchises had the drawing power they have now. In fact, the original deal was made back when Marvel was struggling to pull itself out of bankruptcy in 1997.

Fox has been extraordarily effective in mining its Marvel franchises. The studio made three “X-Men” films, and then a hit summer spinoff in “Wolverine.” Fox is working on a sequel to that film, and has scripts for “X-Men Origins: Magneto," and “X-Men Origins: First Class," the latter of which could bring original "X-Men" helmer Bryan Singer back to the fold. Potential spinoffs for the Gambit and Deadpool characters seen in "Wolverine" have also been discussed.

As producer, Goldsman is involved with several DC Comics transfers, including “Jonah Hex,” “The Losers” and “Teen Titans.” He was also producer on the Will Smith-Charlize Theron-superhero film “Hancock,” a film that has a sequel in development.

ABC emerged from a three-network bidding battle to secure an untitled hour-long dramedy about a lovelorn lawyer that will be scripted by “Chuck” exec producer Ali Adler.

ABC, through Warner Bros. Television Studio, made a “put pilot” commitment for a potential series that will be exec produced by Adler, Josh Schwartz, Stephanie Savage, Sheldon Turner and Jennifer Klein.

The project was inspired by a high-powered Los Angeles-based female attorney who specializes in divorce and family law. Deal called for her identity to be kept secret.

Adler, whose previous TV credits include “Family Guy” and “Commander in Chief,” will script a show whose female protagonist has observed enough misery in her divorce and family law practice to vow never to take the plunge.   

The project originated with Klein, a feature producer and acquaintance of the real attorney. She brought the idea to Turner, who wrote “Orbit,” a film she’s producing at Fox 2000. Turner, who most recently co-wrote “Up in the Air,” the Jason Reitman-directed comedy that stars George Clooney, got a law degree before he began writing scripts.

Klein and Turner enlisted Schwartz and Savage, the “Gossip Girl” co-creators, who turned to Adler. Deals becomes the second recent series project to grow out of Schwartz’s series creation “Chuck,” as Schwartz recently sold a half-hour comedy to CBS that he co-wrote with “Chuck” exec producer Matt Miller.

Adler, Schwartz and Savage are repped by WME, Turner and Klein by CAA. Fuse manages Schwartz.

Keanu Reeves will star in and produce “Henry’s Crime,” a Malcolm Venville-directed romantic comedy that will begin production November in Buffalo.

The project is poised to become the first picture in production for Company Films, the banner that Reeves runs with Stephen Hamel.

Reeves and Hamel will produce with Lemore Syvan. Scott Fischer, who put up development money for the project, will be executive producer through his First Star Films banner.

The picture will be financed through private equity. No distribution has yet been set for the film.

Scripted by Sacha Gervasi, the film is a Capra-esque romantic comedy in which Reeves will play a big-hearted man who is falsely accused of robbing a bank in Buffalo.

Reeves most recently starred in “The Day the Earth Stood Still” and plays a supporting role in the Rebecca Miller directed “The Private Lives of Pippa Lee,” which stars Robin Wright Penn. “Henry’s Crime” is Reeves’s first comedy since 2003’s “Something’s Gotta Give.”

Company Films separately has a deal at Morgan Creek for “Passengers,” a film that Reeves will star in, with script by Jon Spaihts.

Venville most recently directed “44 Inch Chest,” the film scripted by “Sexy Beast” writers Louis Mellis and David Scinto, with an ensemble cast that includes Ray Winstone and Tom Wilkinson.

Gervasi most recently produced and directed “Anvil! The Story of Anvil.”

Reeves is repped by CAA and 3 Arts. Venville is repped by ICM.

Let’s state the obvious: We couldn’t live without our BlackBerries or iPhones. Email is heaven sent.

But not really. More and more busy people are acknowledging “he tyranny of email.” Indeed, that happens to be the title of a hot new book by John Freeman. The fact that we’re all tuned in, moment-by-moment, to the frenzy of the marketplace is not rewarding, it’s downright debilitating. And the Twitter rage has further exacerbated this phenomenon.

I was with a group of top executives who admitted they had no idea how to cope with the chaos of email. One CEO said he simply ignored his email. Another said he assigned an assistant to sort through it, and then ignored it. A third said he had taken to sending petulant emails to associates who sent unnecessary email.

Whatever their avoidance mechanisms, most executives (indeed most people) have become slaves to their BlackBerries or iPhones. They feel compelled to peer at their devices while exercising, eating, driving or even having sex. The temptation to Tweet overcomes all conflicting urges. Multitasking is increasingly embedded in our behavior and many people feel downright futile unless they’re carrying on several conversations at the same time, on line and in person.

An amazing number of smart people are constantly tripped up by their own email. Karl Rove seemed unaware that his email confirmed his role in the political firings of U.S. attorneys.

He’d tried to cover his tracks by instructing co-conspirators to use personal email, not the White House system, but he still seemed to forget the ultimate reality that emails live forever – they have their own perverse immortality.

Anonymous corporate employees often forget this fact when they "secretly" send flirtatious emails to colleagues, then think they’ve erased them. The detectives from HR, however, always find this material – Karl Rove should have realized this.

Freeman, the editor of Granta Magazine, argues in the Wall Street Journal that email “has prompted a breakdown of the barrier between our work and our personal lives… and has isolated us from the persons with whom we live.”

I recently rewatched the late John Hughes’ “The Breakfast Club” and I was reminded of a time when teens experienced their trials and tribulations through face-to-face contact, rather than through texting.

One new study of high school students reports that kids prone to multi-tasking, and multi-texting, had poorer retention abilities and more mediocre grades than those who lived without the omnipresent cellphone.

We all have a shot at “preserving our sanity and our relationships in spite of email,” Freeman says, but -- ‘it all starts with a simple instruction: Don’t send.”

I was going to email Freeman a note in praise of his comments, but I decided to follow his advice: I didn’t send.

After reviving the `Halloween' franchise, Rob Zombie will next reinvent `The Blob.'

Zombie will write, direct and produce a remake of the 1958 horror classic that launched the career of Steve McQueen. Production will begin next spring.

Zombie’s deal to make `The Blob' his next film comes as Dimension opens `H2,' the Zombie-directed sequel to his 2007 hit “Halloween.”

In the original, an object from space crashes into a field, containing a red blob-like substance that absorbs the humans it contacts and grows exponentially. While Zombie was a fan of the original, his version will be much different.  

`My intention is not to have a big red blobby thing, that’s the first thing I want to change,' Zombie said. `That gigantic Jello-looking thing might have been scary to audiences in the 1950s, but people would laugh now. I have a totally different take, one that’s pretty dark.'

Zombie will produce with Genre Company’s Richard Saperstein and Brian Witten, original `Blob' producer Jack H. Harris, and Judith Parker Harris of Worldwide Entertainment Corporation.

Saperstein, the former Dimension Films president who developed a relationship with Zombie while they worked on `Halloween,' said that funding is in place to make an R-rated film that will cost around $30 million. The film’s budget model is similar to recent fright fare like `Cloverfield' and `District 9,' and they will likely lock in a studio distributor before production begins. Genre Company is in pre-production on the independently financed Darren Bousman-directed remake `Mother’s Day.'

For Zombie, the appeal of taking on `The Blob' as his fifth directorial outing was a chance to broaden his range.

`I’d been looking to break out of the horror genre, and this really is a science fiction movie about a thing from outer space,' Zombie said. `I intend to make it scary, and the great thing is, I have the freedom once again to take it in any crazy direction I want to. Even more than `Halloween,' where I had to deal with accepted iconic characters like Michael Myers and Laurie Strode. `The Blob’ is more concept than specific storyline with characters, so I can go nuts with it.'

Zombie has begun writing. While he’ll follow the release of `H2' with a new album and tour this fall, he’ll complete the script at that time.

`I usually follow a movie by putting out a record and going on tour, and I write the script during that tour,' he said. `The tour will take me through Christmas.'

Though Zombie is once again tackling subject matter considered iconic to fright mavens, he’ll repeat his `Halloween' strategy of not being overly reverential.

`I feel good about `H2’ in that it’s far superior to the first film I made, and has no relationship to anything that came before it, or that was in the John Carpenter film,' Zombie said. `My job as director is to carry out my vision. I won’t be pushed around or persuaded in any other direction, and I tell them if that doesn’t work, save the heartache and fire me right now. When you’re out there shooting at 4 AM, you can’t remember notes you got from somebody months ago. What I’m told is, we want you to do your thing, so go for it.'

Zombie’s repped by ICM and managed by Spectacle Entertainment’s Andy Gould, who will also be a producer.

Daniel Craig has committed to star in a psychological thriller titled “Dream House,” marking Morgan Creek’s first movie under the reign of Rick Nicita and its first production start in 3 years.

The film which starts shooting January 25, will be directed by Jim Sheridan. Craig plays a New York publishing exec who relocates his family to a small New England town only to learn that their new home was the scene of a vicious murder.

Nicita, a longtime CAA topper, became co-chairman of Morgan Creek one year ago, sharing that title with James G. Robinson. Morgan Creek fully finances its films, which are distributed through Universal.

Craig is about to star in a Broadway play titled “A Steady Rain,” written by Keith Huff and directed by John Crowley. Hugh Jackman is his co-star. Craig is best known for his James Bond films.

“Dream House” was written by David Loucka. It will be produced by James G. Robinson along with David Robinson, Daniel Bobker and Ehren Krueger.

Sheridan has been nominated for six Oscars. His previous films include “My Left Foot” and “In The Name of the Father.”

UTA has signed writer/director Brad Silberling, and will rep him along with David Lonner, the filmmaker’s longtime agent who recently became his manager.

Silberling, who had been repped by WME, signed with a team headed by Steve Rabineau, Lonner’s longtime agent colleague. Lonner and Rabineau worked closely as partners at Endeavor before leaving together to join WMA. They exited when WMA and Endeavor began to merge, with Rabineau becoming a UTA partner and taking his list of writers and directors.

Lonner formed a management company where he will rep such clients as Silberling, J.J. Abrams, Jon Turteltaub, Audrey Wells and others (Daily Variety, July 26, 2009).

Silberling is coming off the misfire “Land of the Lost,” but he has directed the hits “Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events,” “City of Angels” and “Casper.” 

Silberling is writing an original script that he will direct.

DreamWorks has set Al Gough and Miles Millar to adapt “I Am Number 4,” the novel co-written by “A Million Little Pieces” author James Frey and Jobie Hughes.

DreamWorks bought the title, the first in a six-book series, as a producing vehicle for “Transformers” director Michael Bay. Bay might also direct the picture.

Chris Bender and JC Spink of BenderSpink will be executive producers.

HarperCollins Children’s Books is publishing the book, about a group of nine aliens whose home planet is destroyed. They escape to Earth disguised as teenagers, and the title character discovers he and the others are still being hunted by the enemy that destroyed their planet.

Gough and Millar created “Smallville” and their scripting credits include “Spider-Man 2” and “The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor.” They most recently produced “Hanna Montana: The Movie” and are producing “Quatermain” for DreamWorks.

CAA reps the scribes.

Who knew that Cronkite also played a role in winning the war against the Colombian cocaine cartels?

Michael Caleo was just set by Luc Besson’s Europa Corp to write “Volcano,” a crime feature that focuses on the Bahamian island of Norman’s Cay, which was turned into a hedonistic fortress and the fulcrum of cocaine smuggling by Carlos Lehder, the right hand man of Medellin Cartel leader Pablo Escobar.

Caleo, an Emmy-nominated writer for “The Sopranos,” said that Cronkite figured into the drama after trying to land at the island on his yacht, only to find gunmen waiting for him at the dock.
 
“The island had been owned by vacationers, and one was Walter Cronkite and when he sailed in with his yacht, he was greeted by men with guns who would not let him on the island,” Caleo said.

An indignant Cronkite asked the guards, “Do you know who I am?”

Clearly they did not recognize the CBS news legend who told the country about the assassination of President Kennedy and Neil Armstrong's moon landing, because the thugs sent him scurrying to his boat, firing a few warning shots to get rid of him. That would prove costly to their boss.  
 
“About five years later, when the case went to court in Florida, when it looked like all the testimony came from ex-cons, the doors open and Cronkite walks up and takes the stand,” Caleo said. "Lehder was sentenced to 125 years.”

Caleo said that he is amalgamating Cronkite’s experience with that of a wealthy American whose plane crashed because Lehder's guards would not allow him to land. So in the film, Cronkite might be flying a plane instead of steering a yacht.

“Cronkite’s testimony really helped put an end to the cocaine wars, because when Ledher was gone, it became a different business,” said Caleo. 

Europa Corp’s Besson, who hatched the idea for the film, will produce with Virginie Besson Silla.

"Volcano" puts another Escobar-related film into development, one that might finally bring the Medellin Cartel story to the screen in a major way. There have been several attempts to film the story of the drug kingpin, most recently when "Narc" director Joe Carnahan developed the Mark Bowden book "Killing Pablo." We're still waiting for that film to happen--Carnahan veered off to direct "A Team" for Fox.

So far, the most compelling depiction of Escobar's rise and fall came in a mock movie that was part of the HBO series "Entourage."

Several émigrés from the old William Morris office apparently have won a legal battle against their former agency, or what remains of it.

The agents, who were effectively fired by William Morris, thought they had reached a deal wherein WME, the successor agency, would pay them the difference between their old salaries and they pay they’d receive from their new employers. The seven agents had since won jobs with ICM, UTA, Paradigm and CAA but at lower levels of compensation.

According to sources, the agents were recently told that WME would not agree to that deal. They promptly filed for arbitration and WME this week backed off.

It’s not known how much this will cost WME, but the amount is not insignificant in today’s squeezed economy. Apart from the dollar amount, the agents make no effort to conceal their delight in winning a judgement against the company that tried to stonewall them.

A spokesman for WME declined to comment.