It's been a long time — nearly four years, to be exact — since Mike Myers starred in a movie that didn't involve an animated green ogre. But a glance at his recent to-do list makes it clear that he's ready to make a live-action comeback, with films that resemble the ambitious, character-driven hits that have helped him pull in nearly 2 beeeeellllion dollars at the box office over the years (see below).
In August, Myers begins filming his role as Pitka — a swami-like relationship counselor — in The Love Guru. The part should be a cinch for Myers, who has spent the past two years refining Pitka on stage at comedy clubs. ''We couldn't be happier [with Guru],'' says Paramount production prez Brad Weston. ''[Pitka is] the next in a lifetime of memorable Myers characters.'' After Guru, the 44-year-old actor has two long-gestating projects as potential follow-ups. He's set to play the Who's self-destructive drummer Keith Moon, who died of a drug overdose at age 32, in the biopic See Me, Feel Me: Keith Moon Naked for Your Pleasure. Producer Bill Gerber, who calls Myers' take on the British rock star ''spot-on,'' says he's waiting for a completed script. Myers also signed on to a remake of Danny Kaye's 1947 multicharacter comedy The Secret Life of Walter Mitty last month; as with Feel Me, the script is not finished. (Producers hope to see a final draft by the end of summer.) So who will snag Myers first? ''[Mike is] a genius,'' says Gerber. ''He always makes the right decision. I have faith he'll make the right one again.''
Myers at the Box Office How his many characters stack up
SHREK $960.3*
AUSTIN POWERS $472.4
WAYNE CAMPBELL $169.9
THE CAT IN THE HAT $100.5
*Through June 3, 2007; domestic box office grosses (in millions)
