Sure Shots: Jonah Hill; The Lone Ranger; The Dark Tower

* Jonah Hill is reportedly circling a role in the suddenly very active comedy, Neighborhood Watch. The catch is that Hill wants a bit more money than usual, considering his upcoming flick, Moneyball, is testing extremely well right now. I'm sure he's smellin' himself right now over his massive weight loss, which quite frankly makes him look sorta creepy, but Hill no doubt feels like a super stud. Neighborhood Watch stars Vince Vaughn and Ben Stiller as two guys in a neighborhood watch program, who discover an alien plot to destroy the world. Rosemarie Dewitt was just added on today as Stiller's wife. On a side note, Neighborhood Watch is costing somewhere upwards of $90M, which sounds absurdly high, especially with Akiva Schaffer(Hot Rod) directing. [Vulture]

* The Lone Ranger may not be dead yet! The biggest news of the last few weeks was Disney's decision to scrap The Lone Ranger, which would have had the Pirates of the Caribbean team of Jerry Bruckheimer, Gore Verbinski, and Johnny Depp in tow. The reason? Cost. At $250M there was no way Disney could justify it. But all may not be lost. The budget has reportedly been slashed, with Bruckheimer and Verbinski cutting their usual fees(saving $10M) and some of the film's supernatural elements(????) being dropped as well. Still the total price will be over $200M, which is funny when you think of how little The Coen Brothers' True Grit cost($40M). So this is hardly a done deal yet. Stay tuned. [THR]

* Speaking of bloated budget franchise flicks killed off by major studios, Ron Howard and Brian Grazer are still shopping around their massive adaptation of The Dark Tower. Grazer notes that they're seeking some outside loot to finance the film, which they hope to then distribute through a major studio. Javier Bardem(Eat Pray Love) is still attached for the time being, but you can bet his schedule won't stay open forever. At this point it's unknown if the full package is still in the works, which would have encompassed three films and a couple of television seasons in between. Like I said, massive.