FANTASTIC FOUR MOVIE

a little casting info:

"Fantastic Four" Cast Nearly Complete
Is it clobberin' time for the casting agents at Fox? You be the judge. Variety reports the studio has nearly completed the lineup for the long-awaited big screen version of "The Fantastic Four." Previously announced castmember Michael Chiklis, who will play Ben Grimm/The Thing, will be joined by Ioan Gruffudd ("King Arthur) as brainiac Reed Richards/Mr. Fantastic, and Chris Evans ("Not Another Teen Movie") as the impulsive, spoiled Johnny Storm/The Human Torch.

No word on who'll slink into the role of Sue Storm/Invisible Girl, though the trade says Jessica Alba is the frontrunner, with Rachel MacAdams ("The Notebook") and Keri "Felicity" Russell also in the running. The Tim Story-directed flick, which is budgeted in the $85 million to $90 million range, is set to begin filming later this summer, with a July 1, 2005 release date planned.

In other superhero news, our Spidey sense is tingling over what sounds like a very misguided use of the Marvel Universe. Variety reports there are plans to turn the wise-cracking webslinger into a song-and-dance man in his very own musical stage production. The behind-the-scenes "Spider-Man" dream team currently consists of Neil Jordan as writer, Bono and The Edge as composers, and Broadway "Lion King" mastermind Julie Taymor as director. No word on whether Doc Ock will put his extra limbs to good use for a big "jazz hands" number.