Portman Set to Star in Darren Aronofsky's 'Black Swan'

Please make this happen and not 'RoboCop'

By: Brad Brevet
Published: Tuesday, June 16th 2009 at 1:07 AM

I can't tell you how happy I am to hear Darren Aronofsky has something more likely to get off the ground than that silly RoboCop remake as The Hollywood Reporter announces Natalie Portman is attached to star in Black Swan for the well-respected filmmaker.

The film is described as a supernatural thriller set in the world of New York City ballet. I first reported on it back in January 2007 when it was set up at Universal Pictures with John McLaughlin penning the screenplay. Since that time Universal put the film in turnaround and Mark Heyman, a development exec at Aronofsky's Protozoa Pictures, has done a rewrite. Of course, the attachment of Portman to the project and I would expect Aronofsky's success with The Wrestler is sure to turn a few heads and perhaps get this film off the ground.

The plot as detailed by THR says the film centers on a veteran ballerina (Portman) who finds herself locked in a competitive situation with a rival dancer, with the stakes and twists increasing as the dancers approach a big performance. But it's unclear whether the rival is a supernatural apparition or if the protagonist is simply having delusions.

Steven Zeitchik at THR says those who've read the script say it's a spine-tingler with elements of The Others in which viewers are left to discern what's real and what's imagined.

Word is if a studio steps in this thing could get off the ground this year although Zeitchik does bring up Aronofsky's work on the RoboCop reboot at MGM.