First rumored at the beginning of the month alongside Liam Neeson as a potential star for the film, and then confirming via Twitter that he was eyeing the gig, Variety reports that Russell Crowe has now formally entered negotiations to topline Darren Aronofsky's "Noah."
The project's been one Aronofsky has been wanting to make for a while now, but it seems it won't be your standard Sunday School version of the story. His longstanding collaborator, cinematographer Matthew Libatique, has teased that the film has a "big villain." And in the trade story about it, they reveal that in Aronofsky's incarnation, Noah is a man who has become disillusioned with the way humans have treated the planet and its animals (and then we presume he endeavors to build the ark). From what we recall in our weekly lessons, in the Bible it was God who was dissatisfied with his creations, and commanded Noah to build the Ark before he sent the flood.
Anyway, we'll have to see how this story makes it up to the big screen, but Crowe is a fine choice and can certainly bring the intensity (and the beard) required for the part. And from a studio perspective, he brings the reliable star power of a veteran which probably makes it easier to finance this, rather than rolling the dice with an acclaimed, though somewhat untested younger thesp like Michael Fassbender (who was rumored early on when Christian Bale became unavailable). "Noah" will set sail with cameras rolling in July.