Frank Miller, fresh off the double whammy of Sin City and 300, is gathering steam for another graphic-novel-turned-film adventure,  The Spirit, which he's also directing (all on his own this time) although this time it's not his comic to begin with - it was originally Will Eisner's creation. The news today is that Samuel L. Jackson is in talks to play the villain of the piece, The Octopus.

For those of you who spent your formative years out in the sunshine instead of in a smelly comic book store, The Spirit is the tale of ambitious young cop Denny Colt, (apparently - the comic goes back and forth on this point) killed in the line of duty and reborn as the mysterious masked man The Spirit.

Jackson, however, would be playing The Octupus, a meek lab assistant who reinvents himself as a psychotic nightmare who kills anyone unfortunate enough to see his face. Yup, he's a supervillain most often recognised by his dapper white gloves, and his "tentacles" (metaphorical rather than Doc Ock-esque) reach into every aspect of crime in the comic's Central City.

The question of who'll play The Spirit himself is still up in the air, with Miller, who wrote the screenplay, considering a number of choices. Jackson, however, is his first choice for The Octopus, so watch this space for more news.