Robert Downey Jr, it would seem, needs some advice about talking to girls. So he’s turning to a nine-year-old. We’re certainly surprised he requires help, since he’s got several womanising roles under his belt, those big brown eyes, that dry, winning personality and, oh yeah… a wife in Susan Downey. But the Heat Vision blog reports that he’s circling Fox’s adaptation of How to Talk to Girls.

The studio picked up the rights to Alec Greven’s book nearly two years ago and has since been developing it with Shawn Levy’s 21 Laps company as a possible film for the Night at the Museum director to handle.

Greven wrote the advice tips as part of a school project when he was nine, and was so successful that he won a publishing deal, toured the US talk shows and has since spawned at least three other books.

Former Daily Show head writer Ben Karlin and Stu Zicherman wrote the first few drafts, but with Downey Jr interested, it looks like Susan will be bringing her producing skills to the project, turning it into a vehicle for the actor with a new script and likely a new focus. Whether or not Levy stays attached remains to be seen, but he’s said in the past that he wants to turn the tome into a Big-style comedy.

Bear in mind that Downey Jr is merely flirting with the idea right now and no deals are in place. He’s also got his eye on Sam Raimi’s Wizard of Oz prequel film Oz: The Great and Powerful in play.

Oh, and bad news if you’re Alfonso Cuaron or were hoping to see him appear in Cuaron’s Gravity – he’s officially off the space-borne thriller that is still trying to drag Sandra Bullock into its orbit.