Rob Marshall To Take Over 'Pirates' Film Franchise?

Could noted director Rob Marshall be next in line to helm the "Pirates Of The Carribean" film franchise? Trade paper Variety is reporting this could indeed be the case.

According to Variety, Disney is on the verge of hiring Rob Marshall as director of a fourth "Pirates of the Caribbean" film. This would put the film on track for a 2010 production start, with Johnny Depp once again starring as Captain Jack Sparrow.

The film has been in limbo since original director Gore Verbinski left the project in April of this year.

"While Marshall's involvement wasn't immediately confirmed, sources said things look good enough that the studio has begun casting new characters that will appear in the picture," Variety continued.

To read the entire article, click here.

Before he moves to the open seas, Marshall will release his big screen adaptation of NINE THE MUSICAL, starring Daniel Day-Lewis, Penelope Cruz and Nicole Kidman. The film is set to hit cinemas November 25, 2009. The official trailer was released earlier this year, and we are excited to bring it to you right here on BWW TV!

The all-star cast is directed by Rob Marshall, who also helmed critically-acclaimed 2002 musical Chicago - which garnered six Academy Awards, including a Best Supporting Actress nod for Catherine Zeta-Jones.

In a recent interview, producer Harvey Weinstein is confident that winning formula will be repeated with Nine. He commented to news sources that, "Most definitely. You'll see a lot of nominations. You'll see a lot of dancing too. Really, this is a great musical, a lot of great musical numbers.

"It's directed by Rob Marshall. We won the Oscar for Chicago; hopefully we'll get in the arena again."

Daniel Day-Lewis replaced the previously attached Javier Bardem in the leading role of Guido Contini, Bardem left the project citing exhaustion. Nicole Kidman, Marion Cotillard, Kate Hudson, Stacy "Fergie" Ferguson, Sophia Loren and Judi Dench star in the film as well.

Nine is a musical with a book by Arthur Kopit and music and lyrics by Maury Yeston and is based off of Fredrico Fellini's movie 8 1/2. The play tells the story of a young film maker living in Venice trying to juggle all of the women in his life.

The Broadway production of Nine, directed by Tommy Tune and choreographed by Thommie Walsh, opened on May 9, 1982 at the 46th Street Theatre, where it ran for 729 performances. The cast included Raúl Juliá as Guido, Karen Akers as Luisa, Liliane Montevecchi as Liliane, Anita Morris as Carla, Shelly Burch as Claudia, and Taina Elg as Guido's mother. Replacements later in the run included Bert Convy and Sergio Franchi as Guido, Maureen McGovern as Luisa, and Priscilla Lopez as Liliane. The musical won five Tony Awards, including best musical.

The first revival of the 1982 Tony Award-winning musical hit Broadway in 2003 led by Antonio Banderas-who made his Broadway debut in the role of Guido. Laura Benanti, Jane Krakowski, Mary Stuart Masterson, and Chita Rivera rounded out the original revival cast.

Nine revolves around one central character, Guido Contini a film director in the Fellini mold. He is contracted to write and direct a film, but is unable to come up with a suitable plot. After recent box office failures, he finds himself drifting towards a nervous breakdown. Guido finds himself examining his past flawed relationships with the many women who have come through his life and the struggle to act his mature age of 40--as opposed to nine. For more information visit the official NINE website by clicking here.