| Russell Brand made a return to cinemas this year, though his profile was a little lower than previous efforts, with a small role in the Rock Of Ages ensemble. Now the comedian has entered early talks to take on the lead role in Larry Charles’ Pierre Pierre. If the name sounds familiar, that might be because the project has been through at least one variation before, with Jason Reitman considered it as a directing job that would’ve seen him working with Jim Carrey. He nabbed the script, written by Edwin Cannistraci and Frederick Seton in 2008, and briefly seemed likelyto bring the politically incorrect tale of a French nihilist who transports a stolen painting from Paris to London to screens. Of course, that didn’t work out, but Charles became attached in 2010 and has been pushing it through the development muck since then. It sounds like something Brand could do, especially with Charles there to make sure the funny comes to the fore. Brand will be seen in Diablo Cody’s still-untitled directing debut, which is set to hit screens some time next year. He’ll also be heard in Despicable Me 2, which has a set UK release date of June 28, 2013. Plus he’s been working on his chat show, Brand X, which has just scored a second series from US network FX. | 
