James Mangold to direct Hugh Jackman in The Wolverine

There really shouldn't be any sequel to X-men Origins: Wolverine. What's there left to say? The film stunk by virtually all accounts, and aided in the further dismantling of the once powerful X-men movie franchise. But Fox was dead set on a sequel, and to be fair they've gone out of their way to try and fix the problems of the first. Christopher McQuarrie hammered out a well-received script which would take Wolvie to Japan in a story based on arguably the greatest Wolverine story ever by Frank Miller and Chris Claremont. They even turned all of our heads by bringing in Oscar nominated director Darren Aronofsky to helm the film, titled The Wolverine. Then Aronofsky dropped out, and the project seemed to languish. With all the turmoil in Japan right now(where the film would shoot), it appeared as if the film might not even get off the ground. Well, that's not longer the case, as James Mangold has been offered the director's job with hopes of production starting in the next few months.

Mangold's name was on a list of possibilities for the job, a list that included Gavin O'Connor, Mark Romanek, Antoine Fuqua, Justin Lin, Doug Liman, and more. If Fox was looking for someone who had some of the same sensibilities and style as Aronofsky, Romanek(Never Let Me Go) would've been the choice, but he already turned it down. Mangold is probably the next best option, although his most recent film, the Tom Cruse/Cameron Diaz actioner Knight & Day, might lead some to look sideways. He's still a solid choice who has produced some great flicks over the years, especially his recent remake of 3:10 to Yuma, and let's not forget Walk The Line which was nominated for 5 Academy Awards. He also directed Girl, Interrupted, which one Angelina Jolie her first Oscar.

Fox hopes for shooting to begin this fall, which means they need to get crackin' on casting because all we have right now is Hugh Jackman. Mangold hasn't officially signed, but I'd expect confirmation to come within the next day or so.