Corona | Coming Attractions

Here is the first trailer for I Am Number Four. Like other first looks it's more of a show than a tell, a teaser designed to whet audiences appetites and get them wondering about what's going on. Quite a few scenes show the movie's main star, Alex Pettyfer, running and leaping from danger.

I Am Number Four is scheduled for release on February 18, 2011.

Timothy Olyphant (Live Free or Die Hard) is now replacing Sharlto Copley as the mentor/guardian of Number Four in the film. Copley dropped out because of scheduling conflicts with promoting The A-Team movie, set for release next month.

Also joining the cast are Kevin Durand as the film's villain, The Commander, the alien-in-human form chasing after the exiled young aliens. Teresa Palmer (The Grudge 2) will play Number Six; Dianna Agron is Sarah, a human girl that is romantically involved with Number Four; and Callan McAuliffe will play Number Four's best friend.

South African rising star Sharlto Copley (District 9, the upcoming A-Team movie) is in talks to join Alex Pettyfur in I Am Number Four. Copley's deal would see him play the mentor and guardian of Pettyfur's exiled alien, someone who was once a member of his race's working class before their world was destroyed by their enemies.

Alex Pettyfer (Stormbreaker, the upcoming romantic fantasy Beastly) is in negotiations to play the lead character in I Am Number Four. Pettyfer's character is one of the nine teenage aliens in hiding on Earth now pursued by his race's enemies.

DreamWorks has also launched a Facebook fan page for the film at www.facebook.com/IAmNumberFour.

THR reports that Eagle Eye and Disturbia director D.J. Caruso is now attached to direct this film. Michael Bay, who had been an early candidate to helm the movie, will now settle into a producer role.

Former Smallville storytellers Miles Millar and Al Gough have signed a deal to adapt I Am Number 4 for DreamWorks and director Michael Bay. "We couldn't be more thrilled to have Al and Miles joining DreamWorks on this exciting project," commened Mark Sourian, co-president of production for DreamWorks in the pages of The Hollywood Reporter. "Their body of work illustrates their expertise in this genre, and we look forward to them bringing their vision to this very unique property."

DreamWorks has preemtively optioned the screen rights to I Am Number Four, a science fiction novel that has yet to find a publisher. Co-written by James Frey and a second author whose identity has not been revealed, the book is the first in a proposed six-volume series. Frey is the writer of A Million Little Pieces, a book published in 2003 that was originally promoted as being a true account of author's descent into alcohol and drug addiction and which was turned into a national bestseller by Oprah Winfrey when it was featured on her syndicated talk show. In 2006 evidence was later found that showed Frey made up his story. A second appearance on Oprah resulted in an infamous verbal dressing down of Frey by the talk show hostess.

WME, the new talent agency formed after the merging of Endeavour and William Morris, represents both Michael Bay and James Frey. When Bay approached DreamWorks with the idea of purchasing the movie rights to I Am Number Four the studio moved quickly and closed the deal earlier today. According to The Hollywood Reporter the studio paid a figure somewhere in the "high-six figures" to get the rights to the novel. Bay will be involved as a producer on the DreamWorks project and may step up as the film's director further in its development. No screenwriter has been assigned to the writing project yet.