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At Comingsoon.net, “Lone Ranger” producer Jerry Bruckheimer spoke to the rumors of George Clooney donning the mask by saying nothing was set yet.  He also said the production would aim to sign a director before signing a star.

– Matt Price

Ain’t It Cool News is reporting that George Clooney is reportedly interested in taking on the role of the Lone Ranger, in a planned film to star Johnny Depp as Tonto.  Jerry Bruckheimer is on hand to produce the film, according to the Hollywood Reporter.

These are some pretty top-of-the-A-list stars.  Clooney might seem a little older Ranger than what you’d expect, especially if the film is an origin story and anticipates sequels. On the other hand, he’s a great actor who has yet to really land a franchise hero role.  (Danny Ocean’s an anti-hero, isn’t he?) (EDIT: It was pointed out I’m leaving out Batman, here. I had meant to say “successful franchise,” which “Batman & Robin” wasn’t, though Batman without Clooney has gone on to do pretty well.)

There is some question in the Hollywood Reporter article that Depp’s casting could offend American Indian groups; the article does point out Depp is of mixed ancestry, including Cherokee.

“The Lone Ranger” doesn’t yet have a director, but is being written by the writers of “Pirates of the Caribbean.”

– Matt Price

Press release:  

Congers, NY (August 26, 2008) – When it comes to cinematic storytelling and masterfully rendered characters, no other artist comes close to comic icon John Cassaday. Now, the Lone Ranger, Planetary and Astonishing X-Men artist is coming to his first Wizard World convention in over a year, and his first ever as Guest of Honor!
 
With his current work on Dynamite Entertainments ongoing series, The Lone Ranger, Cassaday is bringing his trademark realistic style to the hero, who celebrates his 75th anniversary this year. His covers and artistic direction have breathed new life into the Lone Ranger and provided the series with a look that grabs readers’ attention every month. Cassaday will also be tackling the equally legendary Buck Rogers on the upcoming series with Dynamite Entertainment.
 
Prior to his involvement with The Lone Ranger, Cassaday collaborated with hotshot television guru Joss Whedon on Marvel’s critically-acclaimed and award-winning series Astonishing X-Men. During his 24 issues and one giant-size special, Cassaday did everything from resurrect Colossus to pit the X-Men against the combined might of an entire race of aliens bent on putting a bullet through the earth. Because of Cassaday’s epic artwork, Marvel’s mutants looked more compelling than they had in decades.
 
Through his work with Warren Ellis on WildStorm’s Planetary, Cassaday showed the comic buying population his wide range. Chilling horror, campy sci-fi, thrilling espionage and daring super-heroics were all depicted and conquered by Cassaday’s pencil-clutching hand. His work on Planetary has earned him numerous awards and unparalleled respect from his peers.
 
During Wizard World Texas, Cassaday will be meeting and greeting his devoted fans and will be involved in various signings and programming events throughout the weekend. Be sure to go to www.wizardworld.com for updates about guests and programming and to save 20 percent off the price of tickets by ordering now. Wizard World, the largest family-friendly comics and pop culture convention in the United States, returns to Texas November 7-9 at the Arlington Convention Center. More Information and exclusives to be announced!
 

Kyle Roberts and I run down some of this week’s releases in the comics podcast.

Matt: Dynamite is doing, I think, a really good job with a lot of different genre Western stuff …  (Lone Ranger & Tonto) is a little bit of a dark Western but a very good one.  I was a little disturbed by parts of the story, but I can’t really say that it was a bad story.  There’s some people being murdered on the frontier, and the Lone Ranger and Tonto investigate. They think that one thing is happening and find out that another thing is happening that is maybe even a little darker and creepier than what we’d expected.  … This is another one that I enjoy, and I’m glad to see more options for Western characters. … If you’re enjoying the regular Lone Ranger, give Lone Ranger & Tonto a look.  It’s got a nice John Cassaday cover,  it’s written by Brett Matthews with John Abrams, and the art is by Marco Guevara.