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Billy Crudup, Children Stars Pull Watchmen Duty

Wed., Jul. 25, 2007 7:41 PM PDT by Natalie Finn

The Doomsday Clock is ticking.

Billy Crudup is set to take on the role of the nuclear accident-enhanced Dr. Manhattan in the big-screen adaptation of Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons' iconic 12-part DC Comics series Watchmen, the only graphic novel to ever win the Hugo Award, a top honor in the world of science fiction and fantasy, and the only work of its kind to appear on Time magazine's list of the 100 best novels since 1923.

Figuring he should stick with what he knows, 300 helmer Zack Snyder, whose cinematic take on Frank Miller's battle epic was a hit at the box office, signed on last year to direct the Cold War-era tale of superhuman abilities and moral ambiguity.

Dr. Manhattan's multifaceted abilities, for instance, include superhuman strength, clairvoyance, telekinesis and the ability to teleport between continents, planets and galaxies (eat your heart out, Hiro Nakamura).

Malin Akerman (the third wheel in Eric's threesome on Entourage) will play the Silk Spectre, the love interest who Dr. Manhattan, for all his good points, just can't connect with, considering his increasing disconnect from humanity and all.

Little Children hunk Patrick Wilson will suit up as gadget expert Nite-Owl, who zooms around in an owl-shaped flying machine-cum-submarine, while Bad News Bear turned Oscar nominee Jackie Earle Haley will play the inkblot-faced vigilante Rorschach, who believes that evil should be unequivocally punished.

Violently.

Jeffrey Dean Morgan (aka the dear, departed Denny on Grey's Anatomy) has signed on to play the apathetic Comedian, a Vietnam Vet who would snuff out a nefarious human life as soon as he'd stub out his ever-present cigar.

Also joining the murky crusade is Matthew Goode (the well-meaning aristocrat who takes Jonathan Rhys Meyers home with him in Match Point), who will play shady multimillionaire Ozymandias. Per the Hollywood Reporter, the spry bullet-catcher hatches a plot to save the world from a catastrophe he (probably wrongly) believes will be caused by Dr. Manhattan.

Watchmen, which debuted in 1986, was shopped from studio to studio before Warner Bros. opted to take the plunge. Darren Aronofsky, Paul Greengrass and Terry Gilliam were all in talks to take the reins at one point, according to Variety.

Jude Law, Keanu Reeves and Tom Cruise all showed interest in the project, as well, with Law and Reeves eyeing the roles of Ozymandias and Dr. Manhattan, respectively.

Instead, Snyder and the Crudup-headed ensemble, which will reportedly be making an appearance at Comic-Con Thursday in honor of the big casting announcement, have been selected to bring one of the most revered graphic novels of all time to the big screen.

Shooting is expected to kick off this fall in Vancouver. The look of Watchmen will likely resemble the is-it-animated, is-it-live look of 300, for which Snyder employed an impressive-looking combination of greenscreen-enhanced action and CGI effects.