If you’re like me, then you’re a Wizard of Oz fan. A big one. The kind that buys symphony tickets to see an orchestra perform the music live while the film plays on the big screen. That whole world is so utterly fantastical and fascinating, so the prospect of so many new Oz-related projects (that have nothing to do with prison) is pretty incredible. Sam Raimi’s own little corner in the county and the land of Oz, titled Oz The Great and Powerful, just got a little bit more interesting as Mila Kunis signed on to play the Wicked Witch of the West. That piece of the puzzle also finally secured James Franco in the leading role. Sorry to disappoint anyone who read the headline and though, “She-Hulk! Finally!” According to Vulture, there’s an intriguing back story to all of it, specifically related to Kunis turning down a leading role in Akira in order to do this one (and Warners offering the iconic role of Kaneda to, seriously, of all people, Brad Pitt). How can they go wrong here? They have two great actors (one of whom we just learned was a great actor), and with any luck, Raimi’s take on the story of the land before Dorthy will be just as colorful as Baum’s novels. Kunis was such a raw, malevolent force in Black Swan, so it’ll be pretty cool to see her transform into the character delivered with such salt by Margaret Hamilton back in 1939. Bring out [Due to Content Scraping and Theft, we have been forced to try abbreviated feeds. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause and woud very much appreciate you clicking through to view the full article on FilmSchoolRejects.com]

What Sam Mendes might be doing when he should be directing Preacher.

A new show from the ‘Friday Night Lights’ team will bring ‘The Wizard of Oz’ to modern day Manhattan.