The trades apparently read yesterday's tirade about their not being any news -- because as weird luck would have it, everything hit the wire as I was getting my Anderson Cooper fix. (I'm not making that up for the sake of cuteness, it's true. The evening is not complete until I discover I lost the 360 Challenge ... again) Now, to the headlines:

• Being the sole man alive never meant you couldn't get a franchise! Variety reports that Warner Bros is putting a prequel to I Am Legend into production. The prequel boasts the return of Will Smith and director Francis Lawrence, and is based on a script outline cooked up by Smith, Lawrence, and producers Akiva Goldsman and James Lassiter. Obviously, it takes place before the plague wiped out New York. I hope they go daring and all Terminator 3-ish, and show Smith as being the scientist responsible for the whole mess. I also hope they name it I Will Be Legend.
  

• Top Cow continues its slow takeover of comic book movies -- IESB reports that Fathom movie is back on, despite creator Michael Turner's untimely death. And reportedly, Cinematical's ever present friend Megan Fox has snagged the lead as Aspen Matthews. It's all from anonymous sources, but given that Magdalena and Witchblade are on their way, I wouldn't be surprised if it's made official before too long.

• Who needs Iron Man and Samuel L. Jackson cameos? September 30th brings, at long last, your chance to finally own David Hasselhoff's Nick Fury: Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D on DVD. Don't think you can pick this up just anywhere, though, it's exclusive to Best Buy. But what price to pay for a cult classic?

Top Cow is on a roll! I never actually thought a week would come in which I would have two stories about that publishing company -- but here it is. Who thought sexy, weapon wielding chicks were such a draw for the movie business? Not I! (Yes, that's sarcasm.)

The latest book to be optioned is Magdalena. It's rather similar to Witchblade except with a much more distinguished lineage. The Magdalena is descended from Sarah, the daughter of Jesus Christ and Mary Magdalene. She's the supernatural defender of the Catholic Church, and can look into the human heart to show people the error of their ways. And because no heroine is complete without a weapon, she wields the Spear of Destiny (the spear which pierced the side of Jesus at the Crucifixion) against the forces of evil. Luckily, nothing in the Magdalena's Catholic contract stipulates that she dress conservatively, so she's allowed to wear the crop tops of a Top Cow heroine.

And according to The Hollywood Reporter, it's already further along in production than Witchblade. No director has been set, but the leads have been cast. Jenna Dewan is currently in talks to play Patience, the spear-wielding holy heroine. (There's been a few, it looks like they're going with the most recent incarnation.) Luke Goss is set to play Kristof, an agent sent by the secret organization that protects the lineage. In the comic, these are cardinals, but somehow I bet Kristof won't be one because that would require way too much chastity -- and the stars are way too hot. Both actors are going to be at Top Cow's panel at ComicCon this weekend. If you're going, you can ask them all sorts of pressing Magdalena movie questions.

There's finally one name to tack onto that Witchblade promotional poster. According to Variety, Michael Rymer is taking the director's chair. He'll also be co-producing, alongside Arclight, Platinum Studios, Havenwood Media, and Top Cow.

If you're a fan of Sci-Fi's Battlestar Galactica, you undoubtedly recognize the name, as he's directed 20 episodes and is filming the series finale. His last feature film was the widely panned The Queen of the Damned, but we won't hold it against him.

Rymer will be fresh off all those tough Battlestar chicks, so Witchblade seems like a good fit for him. Will he be the director to break the Top Cow trend and give poor Sara Pezzini some pants and a nice top? Even if you wield the power of the Witchblade, it seems very dangerous to be running around in your bare skin and bits of armor. The girls of Battlestar Galactica know this and dress sensibly. Here's hoping Rymer takes a page from their costume designer.

The big question still remains: Who will tackle the lead role? Filming is reportedly set to begin in September, so they need to get casting. I'm expecting a total unknown, but with comic books being such hot properties, who knows what actress could be inspired to wield supernatural powers?

I say this with just about every comic book movie that gets green-lit -- but I am always surprised at which characters kick into super high gear while others languish. Are we actually going to see a few Top Cow movies before DC and Warner Bros. get some other character franchises going?

I'm sure this has happened before -- in fact, I seem to remember X-Men posters long before Wolverine was definitively cast, but it is a first for me on Cinematical. Weeks after Top Cow and Platinum Studios announced an upcoming Witchblade movie, a teaser poster has surfaced courtesy of the newly launched official site. The lead actress has not even been cast, no rumors have even reached my ears (which doesn't mean a darn thing) ... but here she is, in all of her sexy glory. What I want to know is what unlucky girl gets to pose for the poster, but not land the lead role. She's lovely, who ever she is.

It's nice to know that the team behind the movie has resisted the Hollywood urge to mess with an iconic superhero costume -- or in this case, the lack of. As this poster is definitely not safe for work, young eyes, or the easily offended, you'll have to click on it to see a larger version. Sigh. This is definitely not what I had in mind when I begged for a superchick movie.

It's always the comic book chicks you don't expect. Variety has announced that Platinum Studios, Top Cow Production and Arclight Films are teaming up to bring Top Cow's Witchblade to the big screen. No word on who will direct, or star, but production is expected to take place in Australia, starting in September. So expect a bunch of announcements on that front soon.

Witchblade has had a surprisingly long lifespan -- it has been a best-selling comic book series with Top Cow since 1995, but most people remember the TNT television show which ran for two seasons. The story centers on a mystical, jewel-encrusted gauntlet that gives extraordinary powers to the chosen wearer -- and that is always a specially chosen female in each generation. It also has the power to, apparently, magically remove all your clothes as seen to the right. (Something missing from the television show.)

I know I should be all "Yeah, this is exactly what I was talking about -- comic heroines!" but it really isn't. If done right, maybe, but she's hardly what I was hoping for. While the Witchblade concept isn't any goofier than admantium claws or eating the sun, I saw it as silly, and never warmed to it. Maybe it's because I have never really understood Top Cow's line of comics. All of my guy friends always say "You're awesome because you don't read those!" I never understood that either, because while they do specialize in kickass women like Witchblade and Tomb Raider, I never thought they were really written for chicks because of all the T&A. I always feel kind of funny reading them. (Yes, I've read them. What my guy friends don't know when they praise me is that I have many issues of Tomb Raider hidden away. Well, I guess they know now. Oh well!)