With all the Jane casting rumors, and the heated debate over who would be right for the part in yesterday’s post about Lucy Hale, we thought it’d be fun to run a poll about who should play Jane. If you picked “Someone else”, be sure to list who in the comments!

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Opinions are mixed on the choice of Chris Weitz as director. io9 is taking a particularly pessimistic stance and has asked “are they insane?”-

It’s not that we’re pulling for Hardwicke’s return to the franchise (despite finding the direction of Twilight one of its high points), but have Summit Entertainment’s decision makers forgotten that Weitz was the man behind the failure of The Golden Compass movie, the last pre-Twilight teen-book-phenomenon that was supposed to be the next Harry Potter? I’m not saying that the lightning of poor-choices-concerning-what-to-keep-and-what-to-cut-from-the-source-material, or even uninspired direction (un)inspiring lackluster performances from his actors, would necessarily strike again, but come on; look at the man’s resume: American Pie aside, there’s not a hit on there… nor anything to suggest that he’d bring anything interesting to the adolescent quadrology’s second chapter.

For Weitz, of course, it’s a chance to make up for his Compass failure, but for Summit, the reasoning is somewhat more obscure. Perhaps there was a lost bet involved.

Weitz did, however, direct About a Boy, which by most regards was a succesful romantic comedy. Roger Moore at the Orlando Sentinel notes that Weitz “will try to find his inner 17-year-old virgin girl. He’s managed some nice moments of empathy in his films, though you could say Golden Compass failed, at least in part, because he didn’t have a handle on the very young heroine.” Patrick Kevin Day at the LA Times has this to say–

On the one hand, Weitz has shown his skill at adapting popular modern novels for the screen — “About a Boy,” from the Nick Hornby novel, won Weitz and co-scripters Paul Weitz and Peter Hedges an Oscar nomination for best adapted screenplay. On the other hand, Weitz also directed last year’s “The Golden Compass,” which was an expensive mess that failed to capture the fan base of the books.

Our own poll indicates that fans are split almost evenly about the choice–we asked “Is Chris Weitz a good choice to direct New Moon” and so far 51% of our visitors think he is, and 49% think he is not. Now that the decision of Chris Weitz has had some time to sink in, be sure to cast your vote if you haven’t already–

Twilight Sequel Gets New Director, Plunges Towards Failure

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We know a lot of people don’t want to see Taylor Lautner leave the role of Jacob Black in New Moon. But with Summit itself talking about the potential for re-casts in a CNN story, there is a chance that Lautner is out. So, who do you want to see play Jacob? Opinions seem to be divided so far in the huge comment thread about the Michael Copon rumor.

Let’s settle it with a three-way poll–with Michael Copon who is 6′1 and 26; Steven Strait who is 6′2 and 22 and Taylor Lautner who is 5′6 and 16 as the likely contenders.

(left to right: Michael Copon, Steven Strait, and Taylor Lautner)

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The rumors were correct–Chris Weitz, director of The Golden Compass, is now the official director of New Moon, Entertainment Weekly reports.

There will be a new director atop the Twilight franchise: and he’ll be a man. Sources tell EW.com that Summit Entertainment is about to hire Chris Weitz (The Golden Compass) as the shepherd for New Moon, the second installment of Stephenie Meyer’s best-selling Twilight series. Weitz is best-known for his work with his brother Paul. The two directed and produced American Pie and then were nominated for an Academy Award for best screenplay for About a Boy, which they also co-directed. Chris’ first solo directing gig, The Golden Compass, didn’t do well stateside but was a hit internationally.

And since a dude with a pigeon on his shoulder doesn’t really do it for us, here’s a bonus picture of Robert Pattinson at the premiere of Sex Drive:

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Looks like the people who want more of Edward Cullen in New Moon will be getting their wish. Reportedly, part of the reason that Catherine Hardwicke was let go from directing New Moon is that she wanted time to make a a faithful translation of the book. That’s because Rosenberg’s script, which has already been delivered, finds a way to put a lot more Robert Pattinson on the screen:

The problem that stalled negotiations was that Hardwicke had strong opinions about what to do with the next installment, and so did Summit. The debate was how to focus the adaptation of the second book, which deals more with giant werewolves than vampires, as well as the long depression of Bella Swan (Kristen Stewart), after her vampire lover (Rob Pattinson) leaves her. One issue was how to get more of teen heartthrob Pattinson into the film. (Rosenberg has figured out a device to achieve this.) But Hardwicke, burned out from her “Twilight” labors, simply wasn’t willing to jam this movie with a script that still needed months of development.

So exactly what is this “device” that Rosenberg has figured out? I’m thinking lots and lots of dream sequences or flashbacks. Or maybe a spirit guide.

I’m torn–though I’d love to see more of Edward in the next installment, I also want a faithful translation to the big screen. Indications point towards less-faithful, more-Edward with Hardwicke leaving the project.

No Hardwicke for ‘Twilight’ sequel

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Well, we kind of saw it coming. The Twilight Movie crew has been cagey in interviews about who will be behind the next movie, and ironically the huge box office results turned out to be bad news for director Catherine Hardwicke. The fans may have been happy, but the critics were not, and thus Hardwicke will be replaced for the big-budget sequel to Twilight. Reuters reports that–

Hardwicke had until recently been thought a candidate to direct the sequel, titled “New Moon,” but word began to circulate in the industry that her relationship with series producer Summit Entertainment has not always been smooth.

On Sunday, Summit confirmed that Hardwicke would not direct the film, saying in a statement that its plans to release the film in late 2009 or early 2010 did not mesh with Hardwicke’s required prep time.

The picture, whose start date has not yet been set, will nontheless reunite writer Melissa Rosenberg and actors Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart. Summit has not named a new director, but it is likely to want to move relatively quickly on the sequel after the original earned nearly $139 million in three weeks of release.

Hardwicke had initially been considered a bold choice for “Twilight.” She made her name with indie breakout “Thirteen” and also directed the period religious tale “The Nativity Story.” The combination proved winning, though, as the midrange-budgeted “Twilight” became one of the fall’s biggest hits.

So is this good news or bad news for the series? As we mentioned recently, there are several other female directors that would be perfect for the New Moon movie .

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Celebrity Cafe notes that fans are definitely looking forward to one thing in the New Moon movie–Jacob:

“Jacob is so hot and so important to the story. People will not care if Edward isn’t in it was much,” wrote one fan. Another agreed saying, “I always wished that Bella would’ve gone for Jacob.”

So which is it for you–are you on Team Edward, or Team Jacob?

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What do you want to see in the trailer for New Moon? Some fans have already put in their two cents with these cool trailers for New Moon that are popping up. Which one is your favorite? Check out all 15 New Moon Trailers after the jump! [click to continue…]

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