George Clooney Boards Gravity

All that talk about losing Robert Downey Jr. looked to be the killing stroke for Gravity, Alfonso Cuaron's space-set thriller. Even with a big-name like Sandra Bullock headlining, Warner Brothers rightfully wanted someone else to help sell the project abroad and Downey's forced exit (The old "conflicting schedules" predicament, gentlemen) was the latest of many hurdles it's faced. It just looked like it would forever rot in Development Hell.

But salvation has come in the form of a leading man both Cuaron and Warner Brothers have agreed upon and now George Clooney has stepped into the role, reports Heat Vision.

Production is aiming for a spring 2011 start once Clooney wraps on his next directorial feature, Ides of March with Paul Giamatti and Ryan Gosling.

What's ironic about this (although don't interpret this as me bitching) is Clooney isn't really that big a box-office draw. That in itself makes you scratch your head about WB's justifiably Hell-bent position of wanting mega-stars to ensure this expensive, and ambitious, movie will make money.

But again I'm not complaining. I've been looking forward to anything Cuaron has cooking upstairs.