So I was making my usual movie blog rounds today, and I came across this post on Hollywood Elsewhere about a 17-minute preview of Sweeney Todd Jeff Wells caught, and the first thing that struck me about the picture he had of Sweeney Todd was that Johnny Depp looks like a younger version of Jim Carrey's Count Olaf in Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events. Seriously ... look at the pictures.

Now, I'm a Johnny Depp girl, I must confess. He's been tops on my personal "yum" list since his 21 Jump Street Days (yeah, dating myself a little there). I've loved Depp in just about everything he's been in, and he's almost always sexy, even when he dresses in one of his more, er, unusual get-ups. But this pic of him in Sweeney Todd, he looks a little scary. The first thing I thought when I saw it was, "Ewww, he looks like Jim Carrey in that Lemony Snicket movie." So I messaged Scott Weinberg, and said, "Scott! Look at this picture! Doesn't Johnny Depp look just like Jim Carrey in that Lemony Snicket movie?" And he messaged back, "Uh, no." and then changed the subject. So I messaged one of my girlfriends and asked her the same thing, and she LOL'd and said "Totally!"

What do you think? Do you think Sweeney Todd looks like a young Count Olaf? And who's sexier in their makeup, Depp or Carrey?

What movie will be the next Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone? That's what all of Hollywood is wondering as each studio gobbles up the rights to every series of youth-oriented fantasy novels it can. Warner Bros. is likely one the most desperate to find out; the Potter movies have been a big cash cow for the studio, and come 2010 there won't be any more to distribute. One hopeful franchise to take Potter's place is Skullduggery Pleasant, a comedic, kid-friendly, horror-mystery novel about a skeleton detective and the 12-year-old girl who helps him out. WB has just beat out other studios to acquire the rights to Skullduggery, as well as sequels -- so far there is only one book published, but there are expected to be nine in total.

The Dublin-set books are written by Derek Landy, who has been hired to pen the adaptation of the first film himself. Landy does have some prior screenwriting experience with the non-kid-friendly horror films Boy Eats Girl and Dead Bodies. The movie will be produced out of London by Peter Czernin and Graham Broadbent, who last gave us the little seen horror pic Wind Chill. As for casting, we can assume there will be a brand new face sought out for the part of 12-year-old Stephanie, while the title character will probably be computer generated (he's the skeleton). With a non-human protagonist, the Skullduggery movie will have to be something really special to be a sub for the Potter pics, with their lovable trio of relatable teens. But there's a chance that if Warners markets the thing well, by having the young girl appeal to female audiences and the skeleton somehow appeal to the male audience, then the studio could at least have a minor hit. Otherwise, I feel like this could be the next Lemony Snicket instead.

Harry Potter may have made kids-lit respectable for grown-ups again, but many authors still enjoy using the old fashioned "nom de plume" to keep their work in two very separate camps. Author Daniel Handler, probably better known as Lemony Snicket from the series of children's books, began using that name in 1999 for the series Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events. The series followed a family of orphans with more than their fair share of bad luck. While he will probably be forever known for the Lemony Snicket series, Handler has also written a book or two for the over 18 crowd.

Handler's novel Adverbs has been picked up by GreeneStreet Films. The book is a collection of interconnected stories about love and relationships that are grouped under headings of different adverbs -- briefly, madly, deeply, etc. It isn't an easy read -- for one thing, there are a lot of characters and events to keep straight. Variety has announced that Handler will be adapting the script himself and while he will try to keep the original tone of the book, it might not be possible to keep all of the different storylines intact.

The production is still in the early stages, so no casting has been announced yet. I am curious to see if the studio tries to cash in on the Lemony Snicket connection or whether they want to avoid the "kiddie table" at all costs.