1. Sigourney sez Avatar 2 is all ready to go

Back in the long long ago, when Your Week In Film was called News Of The Week—how young and foolish we once were—we used to prefix part of the news with some spiel. Each week began with us promising to bring you news of “what century we can expect Avatar 2 [in],” a hilarious reference to how it will likely never see the light of day. Well, how wrong we (potentially) were. According to Sigourney Weaver, production on the sequel is set to begin this autumn. In this century. The news comes via The Hollywood Reporter, to whom Weaver confided at a screening on Monday. Said Weaver: “we’re starting training, and we’re starting… hmm, I probably can’t say anything. We will actually be shooting it by the fall.” So there you have it, some tangible Avatar 2 news. Just what you’ve always wanted.

2. Eric Roth decides script for Denis Villeneuve’s latest is past Dune

Eric Roth has had a long and impressive career. The veteran scribe has penned screenplays for Forrest Gump, The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button, Munich and The Insider. And now he’ll tackle space worms. According to Variety, Roth has signed up to adapt Dune for Denis Villeneuve’s reboot. The story, for those unfamiliar with Frank Herbert’s seminal novel or David Lynch’s cult classic, sees aristocrat Paul Atreides leading a rebellion to restore his family’s claim to the desert planet Arrakis. For fans of either source, don’t worry—Roth’s no stranger to the sci-fi genre. After all, the guy wrote The Postman.

3. Tom Cruise has Mummy issues

The first trailer for Universal’s reboot of its Mummy franchise gave us an extended scene in a plane where shit (and most of the passengers) went down. This time out, we’re shown rather more conventional fare. There’s exposition courtesy of Russell Crowe’s Dr Jekyll (seems a nice guy), more exposition from Jake Johnson (seems an ordinary guy), and some glimpses of the evil do that evil do do. Evil, in this case, is a 2,000 year old Mummy played by Sophie Boutella. Universal has big plans for its Monsters project—what with Johnny Depp set to play the Invisible Man and Javier Bardem in talks to play Frankenstein’s Monster. So this’d better be good.

4. Boss Baby writer comin’ in like a Shrekin’ ball

In a stunning rebuttal to the idea that the pictures business is running out of ideas, writer of The Boss Baby—a film about a wise cracking baby voiced by Alec Baldwin—Michael McCullers, has announced his plans for Shrek 5. Apparently, a fifth feature film about the lovable ogre is already in development. Says McCullers to The Hollywood Reporter, “I finished that script… it’s got a pretty big reinvention behind it that I guess I can’t really reveal.” Could McCullers be hinting that the Shrek universe will pass its baton from Mike Myers and Eddie Murphy to a younger group of upstarts? Or is the “pretty big reinvention” more like a new mash-up featuring Smash Mouth and, I don’t know, Sia or something? We’ll have to wait and see.

5. Christian Bale could play his most polarising character yet

Christian Bale has a substantial back catalogue of performances. Now it looks like he’s set to add to his roles of American Psycho Patrick Bateman and American Hustler Irving Rosenfeld by playing American Vice President Dick Cheney. According to Variety, director Adam McKay wants to get the Big Short band back together and has long had his eye on Bale for the primary role. Joining him will be fellow Big Short alumnus Steve Carrell, who is being tapped for the role of Donald Rumsfeld, and Amy Adams, who is circling the role of Lynne Cheney. McKay will direct the as-yet untitled project from his own screenplay with a look towards releasing it in time for awards consideration.

6. Ride it, my pony

Emily Blunt, Liev Schreiber, Zoe Saldana, Kristin Chenoweth and Michael Peña star in My Little Pony. Here is a teaser trailer to prove that that is true. We suggest you turn the volume down first.

7. Now you are the one who is “it”, Jeremy Renner

Did you read about that game of tag that has been played by a group of friends for over 25 years? It was in The Wall Street Journal a while ago. Well, New Line Cinema must have read it; they’re casting for a cinematic adaptation of the story. Variety reports that Ed Helms is set to be joined by Jeremy Renner and Hannibal Buress in the appropriately named Tag. The story, for those that didn’t read it, told of a group of friends who desperately try not to be “it” throughout each February, in some cases flying around the world and breaking into homes and workplaces so as to get the drop on their unsuspecting buddies. Jeff Tomsic will make his cinematic directorial debut and, if confirmed, Renner, Buress and Helms will be part of the core group of players.  

8. Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg are (adapting) Invincible

It has been six years since The Green Hornet (perhaps unfairly) failed. But it looks like co-writers Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg, who have since teemed up to write and direct The Interview and This Is The End, are ready to get back into the superhero game. The pair will adapt Invincible, from The Walking Dead creator Robert Kirkman (and co-creators Ryan Ottley and Corey Walker). The long-running comic book, now on its 133rd issue, follows Mark Grayson, a high school student who happens to have the most powerful hero on the planet as his father. Yes, it does sound a little like Sky High. In a press release, Rogen and Goldberg admitted that “we will not rest until Invincible is as great a movie as it deserves to be.” And if that involves casting James Franco in an important role, so be it. [via The Hollywood Reporter]