Will Smith
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And he's not reciting quotes from Tropic Thunder, either.  The former Fresh Prince has set his sights on a new adaptation of the classic Daniel Keyes  novel Flowers for Algernon.

Ask any junior high school student and they will tell you that Flowers for Algernon follows a retarded man named Charlie Gordon, who undergoes an experiment that makes him brilliant, but doesn't last. Charlei's world is torn apart when he realizes he is returning to his original IQ of 68. They will also tell you that it was previously adapted into the film Charly, starring Spider-Man's Uncle Ben (Cliff Robertson).

The news of the adaptation comes on the heels of the announcement that Smith's collaboration with Steven Spielberg on an American remake of Oldboy has gone bust, much to the delight of film fans around the globe.

Also rumored to be on Smith's plate are Independence Day 2 and Men In Black 3.

Everyone who was alive back in 1996 remembers that Independence Day was the movie of the summer. It was one of the biggest blockbusters of all time, garnering over 800 million dollars worldwide.

With such a huge gross, one could almost hear the Hollywood machine go "cha-ching!" as it realized the franchise potential of such a film. But nothing happenend.

ID4 Producer/Director Roland Emmerich recently spoke to Latino Review while promoting his upcoming disaster epic, 2012. Upon being asked what the deal was with the long-rumored Independence Day sequel, Emmerich spilled these beans:

"Dean Devlin and I are still set to make a sequel likely because we've found some sort of idea and we approached FOX and FOX has not quite figured out how to incorporate Dean's and my deal, and Will's (Smith) deal. Will wants to do it in some sort of a package they can live with. So it's just been in negations now since forever, and naturally FOX says "Why don't you do it without Will Smith?" I said Will is essential for us, for this movie and actually for the audience too. And, so, it's in limbo and lately the studios are fighting. Like gross players, and Will is a gross player and is probably the only gross player right now who's worth his gross. So we'll see what happens. I would love to do it.."

Furthermore, it seems 20th Century Fox hasn't been all that honest about why the film hasn't happened yet. You can read more on the subject here.

A sequel to last summer's Hancock has already been confirmed.

But MTV News now reports that the movie's two main stars, Will Smith and Charlize Thero,n are on board to reprise their roles from the 2008 blockbuster. Peter Berg will also return to direct the follow-up.

Hancock earned  $628 million worldwide last year. In a twist about halfway through the movie, it was revealed that Smith and Theron's characters are immortal gods that become vulnerable when near each other.

For the sequel, Berg is on record with a plan to feature at least one more all-powerful entity such as these two. Moreover,, he's got his eye on a well-known name to play a third superhero.

"We have [someone in mind]," Berg told MTV. "I'm not gonna tell you who, but we have!"

The world's most popular movie star has found his next project.

Will Smith will re-team with I Am Legend director Francis Lawrence for a high-concept fantasy drama titled City That Sailed.

The film centers on a New York City street magician whose daughter resides in England.

The girl, while exploring a lighthouse, discovers a few magic candles and makes a wish to be reunited with her father. Presto! This wish causes Manhattan to break away from the rest of New York and float across the Atlantic.

As Will Smith makes the publicity rounds for his new film, Seven Pounds, he has more than the usual hype to share.

According to an interview the actor gave to MoviesOnline, the drama changed his life...

I had an epiphany after working on “Seven Pounds.”  I realized that part of that feeling was that I was looking at my life and I was looking at myself and my future too much around these movies.  And after “Seven Pounds” l just had this huge epiphany of how much more I want to be, how much more I want to do, and the idea of living in service to humanity vs. living in service to the commerce of my movies. 

And that explosion just totally washed away that sort of scary uncomfortable feeling.  It’s like however people look at me as a movie star or not, I want to be remembered as a man who cared about people and dedicated his life to making the world better, so with that I went from thinking of myself in this high place to damn, I’ve got so much to do, I need to get to work.

And that’s so much better a place for me emotionally.

Would you line up to see an I Am Legend prequel?

Will Smith sure hopes so.

In an interview with Collider, the actor talked about the project:

"It's essentially the fall of the last city – the last stand of Manhattan. The movie would be... within the body of the movie D.C. and then Manhattan would fall as the last city. It's a really cool idea trying to figure it out...there's a reason why we have to take a small band and we have to get into D.C. So we have to make our way from New York to D.C. and then back to New York."

Will Smith might be Legend again.

Will Smith has played a pilot, a boxer and a drunken super hero.

Up next? An Egyptian pharaoh.

The actor will appear in The Last Pharaoh a big-budget movie for Columbia, according to The Hollywood Reporter. The film revolves around Taharqa, the titular Egyptian ruler who battled Assyrian invaders back in 677 BC.

Hancock was a summer hit for Will Smith. He's now ready to take on the role of an Egyptian pharaoh.