For ages now, Jake Gyllenhaal has been the superhero understudy who never gets called to the stage. Actor, after actor, after actor gets picked for the tights and hero lifestyle while his interest in the theme goes nowhere. From Shazam to Spider-Man, he's always been a possibility, but never a real contender who gets to save the world -- which is funny since he's found so much success in civilian clothes. Now it looks like the closest thing to a superhero we'll get from the actor is his strange, yet undeniably endearing Bubble Boy.

Jake talked with MTV recently about the tights, the capes, and keeping the world safe from villains. He said: "I have definitely wanted to play superheroes in the past. I've definitely been into [playing a comic-book character] but, for one reason or another, it hasn't ever worked out." So far, so good. He's had interest, but it doesn't work out. How does he appease himself? "I think of how a character, in reality, is like a superhero -- rather than actually being a superhero." So now his sights are turned to heroes who don't wear tights, and who don't come from the colorful pages of comic books; he wants something a little more real: "I'd love to play a really cool character like Jason Bourne, not necessarily a superhero, but definitely a cool character that does great, fun [real-world] action."

He still doesn't sound against the idea, but Gyllenhaal has definitely moved on from the dream. Perhaps it's for the best. Superhero flicks can be tricky, and I'm sure the last thing he wants is to get stuck in a stinker. If, through all of this, you're still holding out hope for him to take Spider-Man, he says: "No, it's been well done already." Then again, Spidey was only supposed to hit the screen 3 times, so news can always change. What would you rather see him doing? Action flicks, or superheroes?

In covering the San Diego ComicCon, Geoff Boucher's Los Angeles Times blog notes that writer-director John August will not be in attendance, since he's toiling away on New Line's film adaptation of Shazam!, the Captain Marvel movie. As has been reported, Jake Gyllenhaal and The Rock are two possible candidates to play the superhero, possibly in the before and after transformation. The Captain is a crippled newsboy named Billy Batson who is endowed by a Dumbledorish wizard to transform himself into a mighty scarlet-clad superhero. Captain Marvel has been on screen since the Republic serial of 1941 when Tom Tyler played him, even though Captain Marvel looks awfully like Fred MacMurray in C. C. Beck's classic comic books. In August's own blog, the perennial collaborator with Tim Burton (Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Big Fish, et al) tried to describe his own geek-free vision of what's going on. He includes a cheat sheet to describe some of the better moments in print with the Big Red Cheese...none of the comic book pics include Frank Miller's DK 2, where Miller proposed an interesting theory: That Captain Marvel's alter-ego Billy Batson could die of old age, leaving him trapped in that big torso and doorman's costume.

Boucher talks about August's provocative remarks, but here's the entire quote from August's blog (words that will really make the old-time fans of Captain Marvel wish they had a large Styrofoam boulder to throw at him): "Every time I read one of these [comic books]," says August, "I'm struck with the same realization I encounter trying to watch The Honeymooners or a black-and-white movie. Wow. Old thing suck." He goes on to add: "... Old-time comic books were awkwardly written, crudely drawn, and bewilderingly inconsistent with their rules. They were making up the art form as they went along, and today's comic books are better for the accumulated wisdom." The breezy inconsistency between an art form sucking and yet having accumulated wisdom bypasses August. One had to be grateful for the correspondent who wrote into August saying "Pretty harsh words from the guy who wrote the film version of Charlie's Angels" ... even if he did put a smiley emoticon next to it. Check out the LA Times story for more on the movie, including when it's set, what Captain Marvel will look like and who might play villain.

Edited to correct quote.

Though Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson has dabbled in video game adaptations (Doom) and big-budget fantasy flicks (The Scorpion King), surprisingly, he has yet to try on a superhero costume. But that might change, as the actor has expressed interest in playing Captain Marvel for the upcoming big-screen adaptation of Shazam! And while I'm certainly curious to see how they plan to take some scrawny 10 year-old kid and turn him into The Rock after muttering that oh-so magical word, I do think the dude is a much better choice than, say, Jake Gyllenhaal. (Of course, there are thousands of teenage girls who might think otherwise -- Jake, we love you!!)

In speaking with IGN, Rock admits that director Peter Segal has already lodged the Captain Marvel nugget in his head. He says, "Listen, John August is writing the script. He's a tremendous writer and [I'll] wait for the script to come in. But I would love to work with Pete [Segal] again, and certainly I've loved everything John August has written so it's a strong possibility." I love how he opens the sentence with "Listen ...," as if he's going to follow it up with "And if you have a problem with that then we can step outside." For those who aren't aware, The Rock is currently starring alongside Steve Carell and Anne Hathaway in Get Smart; a film that is also being helmed by Segal -- hence the reason why the question was asked.

When asked whether Captain Marvel would be a "man in tights" or if Segal was going to update the superhero's look, The Rock lifted one eyebrow (okay, I'm not sure that he did this, but it makes the story sound better) and replied: "Well, knowing Pete he would update [it]. [Segal]'s very excited about the project and understandably so, and he talks about it with passion. Pete also understands the importance of making sure to get that right. He's a big comic book fan. I don't know if you know that." Actually, I didn't know that; then again, there have been other directors who were so-called "big comic book fans," but their movies didn't exactly turn out so great. However, I have faith that John August will a) turn in a fine script and b) let us all know, through his blog, whether or not The Rock rumor is a valid one.

John August is a talented screenwriter who wrote both Charlie's Angels films (hey, somebody had to get each ass jiggle down on paper!) and is a favorite of Tim Burton, having worked on scripts for Big Fish, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and the massively disappointing Corpse Bride. In my opinion, August has never equaled his incredible script for 1999's Go, one of the most underappreciated films of the 90's, but the guy's got the goods. He also has an endlessly informative and always humorous screenwriting blog that should be required reading for any aspiring writer. On it, he debunks the rumor floating around the internet right now that Jake Gyllenhaal has been tapped to play Captain Marvel in Shazam! - the script August is currently working on. He does say in the entry that Gyllenhaal is likely to be one of the names mentioned for the role when the time comes, but that those discussions aren't even close to starting. We covered the Gyllenhaal rumor last week, but, it should be noted, we did not present it as fact. The direct link to August's response is here.

According to August, casting for Shazam! "has come up exactly zero times" and the project "currently has no start date, no release date, no movie whatsoever. There's just a script to be written. Which I should probably get back to." So there you have it. Don't rule Mr. Darko out, but he's nowhere near getting fitted for a codpiece just yet. Peter Segal is scheduled to direct Shazam!, which we'll more than likely see in 2008. Segal seems like an odd choice, as thus far he's only shot comedies, and mostly terrible ones (though to be fair, he does have one genuinely hilarious flick under his belt). August's directorial debut, The Nines, with Ryan Reynolds and Hope Davis, premiered to great notices at Sundance in January, and was recently picked up by GreeneStreet Films. Hopefully we can look forward to that this year.

[via IGN]

It appears there's a bit of a tug-of-war going on right now over the hunky Jake Gyllenhaal. However, instead of two females fighting for his love, a couple of Hollywood heavyweights are fighting to attach the star to one of two high profile projects. The New York Daily News gossip columnists Rush & Molloy (not exactly reliable sources, we know) tell us New Line is preparing to offer Gyllenhaal a massive payday to take on the role of Captain Marvel in Shazam!, yet another comic book-turned-feature film project to be directed by Peter Segal and written by John August. Studio views Shazam! as having the potential to be a huge franchise -- along the lines of both Batman and Spider-Man -- but only if they can sign up the right talent.

There's one small problem though: New Line is trying to act real fast so that Sam Raimi and the folks behind the Spider-Man franchise don't convince Gyllenhaal to replace Tobey Maguire instead. With his boyish good looks and ability to pack on some muscle and the charm, Gyllenhaal would be a perfect replacement for Maguire -- one that would definitely help the series continue and, perhaps, help attract an even larger fanbase. But would he make a good Captain Marvel? In Shazam!, a teenage boy named Billy Batson finds he has the ability to transform into an adult superhero when he utters the magic word, Shazam! So, if Gyllenhaal does land the role, would he play both the teenager and the adult superhero? Will New Line update the story so that Batson is a tad older, this way an actor can play both roles (like in Batman and Spider-Man)? What do you think -- would Gyllenhaal be better as Captain Marvel or as the new Spider-Man?

[via JoBlo]

Here's how you know I'm a moron: When I first started reading this story, I immediately scratched my head and thought, "Wait, they're remaking that horrible Shaquille O'Neil movie?" Yes, I'm an idiot ... and this is a disability I live with each and every single day. That movie was Kazaam, but this one is Shazam! -- you'll notice the latter has an 'S', an extra 'A' and an exclamation point at the end to let you know it means business. New Line is adapting the DC Comics series for the big screen, and just attached John August to pen the script. Peter Segal will direct, as well as produce alongside Michael Ewing.

By this point, it's pretty obvious I'm not all too familiar with Shazam! The story (which sounds pretty damn cool) revolves around a teenager named Billy Batson who becomes the superhero Captain Marvel when he utters the magic word ... which, of course, is Shazam! The project has certainly made the rounds; at one point, William Goldman and Bryan Goluboff were brought on to pen drafts. However, Segal was interested in August's natural ability to tell big, ambitious stories set in fantastic worlds without sacrificing character. Says August, "What's terrific about the character is that he looks like this superstudly superhero but is really a 13-year-old boy. And to approach everything that is great about a superhero movie from a 13-year-old boy's perspective was a unique way in."

Known for helming a string of very successful comedies (including 50 First Dates, Anger Management, The Longest Yard and Nutty Professor II: The Klumps), it will be interesting to see how Segal approaches a superhero flick. There's no doubt August will turn in a larger-than-life script, and if Segal can stay the course and do what he does best, Shazam! should explode at the box office once it hits theaters. But here's the big question: Who do you get to play the kid and the adult? (And please don't say Ben Affleck.)

The wisdom of Solomon, the strength of Hercules, the stamina of Aries, the power of Zeus, the courage of Achilles and the speed of Mercury! Any good geek knows what happens when you combine these elements -- Captain Marvel! DC's famous comic Shazam (it's an acronym, see?), featuring young Billy Batson transforming into the superhero Captain Marvel has been optioned for a feature film under the directorial eye of Peter Segal. No word yet on a script, time frame, or casting thoughts.

I know the story of Shazam can seem sorta campy ... but I honestly really enjoy it. And let's be honest, a lot of comic book characters can seem sorta campy at times. I, for one, am really excited for this one. Granted, I generally get excited for just about any superhero movie. Now let's just hope they can find someone appropriate to cast as Billy. Suggestions?