Looking Marvel-ous

Blade 2
STUDIO New Line
PLANNED RELEASE 2001 or 2002
THE STORY SO FAR The deal behind the first Blade, made by a bankrupt Marvel, was "great...for New Line," says Arad. "It wasn't a good deal for us. But they made the brand valuable." The 1998 movie grossed enough — $70 million in the U.S. — to bring Wesley Snipes back to vamp for round two, directed by Guillermo del Toro (Mimic).

The Hulk
STUDIO Universal
PLANNED RELEASE In development for 2002
THE STORY SO FAR Marvel worked with ILM to fashion the post-morph look of the green giant. Michael France (GoldenEye) — who also did an original draft for The Fantastic Four — is shepherding the script; Gale Anne Hurd (Aliens, Armageddon) is attached to produce.

Fantastic Four
STUDIO Fox
PLANNED RELEASE 2001 or 2002
THE STORY SO FAR Sam Hamm (Batman) is cheering up France's dark script about the quartet of superheroes — making them a tad more...dysfunctional. ''It's probably the biggest sitcom of all time,'' says Arad. So it makes sense that Raja Gosnell (Big Momma's House) has been tapped to direct.

Ghost Rider
STUDIO Crystal Sky Entertainment
PLANNED RELEASE 2002 or 2003
THE STORY SO FAR David S. Goyer (Blade 1 and 2) is working on a script, about an avenging supernatural biker. Budgeted at $75 million, Johnny Depp is being targeted to star.

Daredevil
STUDIO New Regency
PLANNED RELEASE In development for 2003
THE STORY SO FAR Arad says he yanked Daredevil and Dr. Strange projects from Columbia not because of disagreements on producers or Internet tie-ins (''Bulls---,'' he says) but because ''the deal wasn't right.'' He got a better one (read: gross participation) when he placed Daredevil at New Regency, with Fox distributing.

IN THE WORKS The Mask of Zorro scribes Ted Elliott and Terry Rossio are writing Iron Man, the tale of a billionaire industrialist hero who invents his own heavily armored shell — top names like Nicolas Cage and Tom Cruise have been bandied about. Andrew Kevin Walker (Se7en) — who wrote a draft of X-Men years ago — has completed a script for Silver Surfer. Dr. Strange is still trying to get its magical mojo working.