From variety, we have word that Dreamworks is preparing a pirate film based on the life of the famous (or infamous as some would have it) pirate Blackbeard. The film will have an interesting team behind the scenes, too: David Franzoni, the writer behind Amistad and Gladiator, will pen the screenplay, and Barry Josephson is producing alongside former prexy/co-owner of the Philadelphia 76ers, Pat Croce. Croce has a real devotion to piracy -- he wrote Pirate Soul, a book chronicling the Golden Age of piracy, and owns a pirate museum in Key West, Florida. He's working with Franzoni on the screenplay.

It's about time we see some of the aftershock of the juggernaut that was Pirates of the Caribbean. I was sure we would see wave after wave of pirate films until the point where we ended up with a remake of Cutthroat Island. In any case, this is awesome news for me as I am a huge pirate fan (have been since I was 4 or younger, so no, I didn't jump on no pirate bandwagon, I have been a buccaneer for a long time). I hope this turns out as good as it sounds on paper - but with someone who wrote 2 good films, and another guy who owns a pirate museum and wrote a book about pirates - hopes look good.