It's been rumoured for days now, but Chris Weitz has been officially confirmed as the director for Twilight sequel New Moon, after original director Catherine Hardwicke announced that she would not be returning due to "scheduling conflicts".
Instead, the director of About A Boy and The Golden Compass is taking the reins of the film, which faces the difficult challenge of holding the interest of teenage girls without the help of heartthrob Robert Pattinson as Edward, since he spends most of the story buggered off elsewhere. But as the plot has it, it's all for Bella's (Kristen Stewart) own good, as he tries to force her to get over him, and she instead turns to daredevil stunts and Quileute boy Jacob Black (Taylor Lautner) for comfort.
Weitz's track record is not unencouraging: About A Boy is a fun character piece, and The Golden Compass certainly looked great - and, lest we forget, had a teenage female lead. But we'll see how he handles this much girlier franchise in late 2009 or early 2010, when New Moon is planned for release.