Spotless Mind director Michel Gondry to direct Green Hornet?

Yup, according to The Hollywood Reporter, Michel Gondry – who directed indie faves Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, The Science of Sleep and Be Kind Rewind – is apparently in deep discussions to direct The Green Hornet for Columbia, with Seth Rogen starring as the crime-fighting vigilante hero.

Stephen Chow (Kung Fu Hustle) was to direct the project, but dropped out over creative differences, although he is still attached to co-star as Kato, the role made famous by the late Bruce Lee.

According to the report, the choice of Gondry signals that the direction the studio and producer Neal Moritz (also producer of the upcoming Fast & Furious, Flash Gordon and Luke Cage) are trying to take the project is not your typical action genre film – possibly ala Ang Lee’s Hulk.

The Green Hornet follows the adventures of newspaperman and bored playboy Britt Reid, who fights crime by night as a masked hero, along with his sidekick Kato, who has incredible martial arts skills.

Below is a trailer for the Van Williams/Bruce Lee series The Green Hornet from the 1960s.