http://chud.com/nextraimages/dec30worstpun.jpgI wouldn’t mind having Stuart Beattie’s career. It started out rocky – Joey! (and not the one who is on Dancing with the Stars now, either) – but after Pirates of the Caribbean he’s been adding interesting and diverse movies to his resume. Collateral, Derailed (which sucked dick, but who knows at what point that movie lost the way) and the upcoming 3:10 to Yuma, 30 Days of Night, Australia (the Baz Luhrmann epic) and Without Remorse. Dude is all over the map, and I can appreciate that.

Now Beattie is getting into the comic book movie business with Punisher 2, according to Thomas Jane. Jane tells the website BigFanBoy (and I thought CHUD was a tough name to live with some days) that Beattie’s mission is to make The Punisher 2 “a drama, without any goofy stuff.  "Just straight noir, drama, with the inherent blood and guts in it."  Jane also says it will definitely take place in New York.”

I think there’s about ten watchable minutes in the first Punisher, but I sort of find Thomas Jane’s intense boosterism of the potential franchise adorable. Mix that with Beattie at the word processor and maybe I’ll find myself liking the next picture. Just leave the fire hydrant antics behind, Stu.