The Incredible Hulk Returns With New Director

The Hulk just turned Incredible again. And landed a new director. After a less-than-kind response to the first Hulk, you may be surprised to learn that a sequel is on the way, only this time it won't be directed by Ang Lee. Marvel Studios' president of production Kevin Feige announced that the director of The Transporter movies and Jet Li's Unleashed, Louis Leterrier has been given the reins of the big green guy, showing they clearly want to go in a different direction with the classic hero. Reuters reported that Zak Penn, the man who wrote X2: X-Men United and X-Men: The Last Stand is currently writing the script and that casting will begin shortly.

About the Louis Leterrier signing, Reuters quotes Marvel Studios' president of production Kevin Feige as saying "His movies have humor and character depth set against fantastic action, and these aspects will be explored to the fullest extent in Hulk." Kevin Feige added "people want to see the green guy again" and revealed that Louis Letterier will be formally introduced to Hulk's fans during a Marvel Studios panel at Comic-Con this Saturday.

If the rumors are true, the "sequel" to Hulk, a movie that made $132 million but cost $150 million, will be a complete reimagining of the hero, almost more of a remake than a continuation. The film will be titled The Incredible Hulk and is rumored to return the hero to his comic book roots, making it unlikely to have a place for any of the stars of the original film, including Eric Bana or Jennifer Connelly.

Hollywood News has a few more quotes from Marvel Studios' Kevin Feige about the Louis Leterrier signing for The Incredible Hulk, adding "Leterrier has a tremendous passion for this genre and shares our vision for the new direction of the 'Incredible Hulk' franchise, one of the gems of the Marvel Universe. We are very excited to be working with such a talented director to bring one of our pre-eminent Super Hero franchises back to the big screen, and we are certain that he will bring the Hulk to life in a way that will appeal to a mass audience as well as the core Super Hero fan base."

If the rest of the project falls into place, watch for Louis Leterrier's The Incredible Hulk in theaters in 2008.

[Additional Sources: Reuters, Hollywood News]