Early this morning, a rumor hit the Internets concerning Vin Diesel and one of his upcoming gigs. Citing a "trusted source," website CineFOOLS reported that "Vin Diesel has dropped out of 'xXx 3.'" No reason accompanied the news, though the writer speculated that it might have something to do with director Rob Cohen's departure from the franchise. Diesel of course launched the franchise in 2002, though the 2005 sequel centered on a new hero, played by Ice Cube.

Seeing as how the title of the film specifically references Diesel's character, his departure would likely spell some pretty significant changes for the coming sequel. Fortunately, it turns out that the rumor is untrue: Vin Diesel is still on board to star in "xXx: The Return of Xander Cage," which currently has a tentative 2011 release listed. Read more...

-- "G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra" star Channing Tatum has joined the cast of Roman epic "Eagle of the Ninth," along with Jamie Bell, Donald Sutherland and "Sherlock Holmes" star Mark Strong. Tatum will star as Marcus Aquila, sent by Rome to Britain to figure out what happened to the missing Ninth Legion. (The Hollywood Reporter)

-- Even though Vin Diesel and director Rob Cohen were going to re-team for "xXx: The Return of Xander Cage," Cohen has since taken on other projects and the extreme sports super-spy simply can't fit into his schedule. Diesel will instead receive direction from "Invincible" helmer Ericson Core. (The Hollywood Reporter) Read more...

That headline literally called me up and begged to be used. Who am I not to oblige? "xXx" and "The Fast and the Furious" director Rob Cohen is finished working with Vin Diesel for the forseeable future. Cohen, who had been set to direct the gravelly-voiced actor in "xXx: The Return of Xander Cage," has now backed out of the project, according to a report in Variety. Cohen has instead turned his attention to "Medieval," a blockbuster action romp that the director describes as "'The Maginificent Seven' in the Middle Ages."

Cohen will be working off of a script from Alex Litvak and Michael Finch, with New Regency financing/distributing the film through Fox and "Terminator Salvation" director McG serving in some sort of production role. Cohen studied anthropology and European history at Harvard, which is what sparked his interest in the project. The Variety report offers no story details, but cites "sources" as saying that "the action brings together warriors from disparate cultures." Read more...

When your name is Vin Diesel, you have two "Fast and Furious" installments under your belt, and a video game is designed around your heroic visage, the chances are good that you'll nab the leading part when it's turned into a movie. So, Variety's announcement that Vin Diesel will be starring in Paramount's game-to-film adaptation of "The Wheelman" should really come as a surprise to no one. However, it is news that John Singleton will direct, although given his past work on "2 Fast, 2 Furious" that might not be surprising either!

The game (and the movie) has Diesel playing an expert driver who comes out of retirement to protect a woman from his past. He ends up in Barcelona, caught in the middle of a gang war, which encourages a lot of guns, explosions, and Diesel grimness. Read more...

Vin Diesel promised at least two more "Chronicles of Riddick" sequels, taking his sci-fi action hero into the depths of the Underverse and beyond. Diesel, whose new film "Fast & Furious" hits theaters this week, chose his words carefully, but he hinted at some epic fight scenes to come in the third Riddick installment.

"There will be long scenes and long portions, full acts of just Riddick against the beasts -- or creatures -- isolated, which will be very compelling," Diesel told MTV News. "How that's interwoven with the mythology set forth in 'Chronicles of Riddick' is what we're waiting for from David Twowy, who's almost done with the script." Read more...

FROM SPLASH PAGE: For a man with a substantial chunk of geek cred — please see his publicly acknowledged “Dungeons and Dragons” loyalty — “Fast and Furious” star Vin Diesel has remained surprisingly squeamish when it comes to comic book films, declaring that he makes his own superhero characters instead. Interestingly, it might be that superheroes aren’t his preference, as the actor recently told MTV News that he’s got his eye on some more villainous roles.

“I would be more apt to play a villain,” Diesel revealed to MTV News. “[I'd like to play] the protagonist of a story that is also like a Marvel villain — like Doctor Doom or something.”

Read more about Vin Diesel's comic book movie aspirations at SplashPage.MTV.com.

Do you know what the best thing about the "Fast and the Furious" franchise is? The racing, which we showed you yesterday, but also the fact that when the cast show up for the movie premieres, they genuinely look like they're having a good time. They look like friends, and it makes me want to see their movies.

Last night's "Fast & Furious" premiere, the forth in the series, was no different.

The speedsters hung out, joked around, posed for photos and signed autographs for their loyal fans. It makes me speculate that they may even hang out when they're not getting paid to! And everyone looked great! No fashion faux pas from the principle cast. Jordana Brewster wore a very feminine light pink, Grecian-looking dress that fit perfectly. Michelle Rodriguez's form-fitting black lacy number was a bit risqué, with its nude undertones, but really showed off what great shape she is in. (Check out the cast after the jump, plus see all the "Fast & Furious" premiere photos in our gallery.) Read more...

The "Fast and the Furious" franchise has always been a guilty pleasure of mine. Mindless action, hot women and the most important ingrediant of all: some downright jaw-dropping driving sequences. The two sequels that followed managed to find modest success at the box office, but even still, nothing managed to reach the high-adreneline flavor of the original. Now, things have changed...

"Fast & Furious" -- out April 3 -- reunites Vin Diesel and Paul Walker as reluctant teammates out to bust open a criminal cartel. But the story itself doesn't matter as much as the street racing, and thankfully this fourth film pushes things to the next level. You can get a sense of that in our exclusive clip below, and then stay tuned to MTV.com for even more coverage.

Ladies and gentlemen, start your engines. Vin Diesel and Paul Walker have reunited for "Fast & Furious," the latest installment of the street-racing "Fast and the Furious" franchise.

Joining the pair will be Michelle Rodriguez and Jordana Brewster, all of whom you can see on the exclusive teaser poster after the jump. "Fast & Furious" parks in theaters April 3, 2009. Read more...

- Vin Diesel and Rob Cohen to go “XXX” again, as Columbia Pictures puts second sequel, “The Return of Xander Cage,” on the fast-track. (Variety)

- An extended, catch it before it gets taken down, preview for “The Day the Earth Stood Still” pops up online. (Fan Blog)

- Things we lost in the fire: Universal Studios reportedly set to re-open King Kong ride – only this time basing the experience on Peter Jackson’s re-make. (Jim Hill Media)

- Jack White turns red (with anger) over use of his Bond theme in Coke commercial. (BBC)

- The literary world lost a true genius over the weekend, but could David Foster Wallace’s death propel an “Infinite Jest” movie to the big-screen? (CHUD)

- Reese Witherspoon and Vince Vaughn meet under the mistletoe in trailer for “Four Christmases.” Bonus Jon Favreau action included. (Yahoo)