After a long time spent courting their number one choice, sending flowers and special boat-themed presents to Christian Bale, Darren Aronofsky and studio backers Paramount are heartbroken as he’s decided to pass on the lead in Biblical epic Noah. But never fear! For there is a new possibility in the frame! Give us an “F”! Give us an “A”! Give us an “S”… Look, it’ll take far too long to spell his name out that way: it’s Michael Fassbender.
Bale has apparently had to give up the chance to play the boat-building bloke because of his busy schedule, largely dominated by two new Terrence Malick films, Lawless and Knight Of Cups, plus any press he’ll need to do for The Dark Knight Rises.
And while you might think Fassbender would be even more in demand than Sir Good For You, he’s actually only got one active project on his radar right now – another playdate with best pal Steve McQueen for 12 Years A Slave. He had been looking at real-life spy drama Londongrad, but that has come to a grinding halt now Rise Of The Planet Of The Apes director Rupert Wyatt has dropped the project.
So while there’s not even a formal offer in place for Fassbender, he has apparently chatted to Aronofsky about taking on the film, which the director originally co-wrote with Ari Handel. With a freshly polished script in hand courtesy of Hugo's John Logan, Aronofsky hopes to sail the production seas this coming spring.