'Wolverine 2' Likely Going To Shoot In New York To Accommodate Aronofsky, Production Probably To Begin March 2011

Let's be incredibly brief here since this project seems to be a done deal.

As you know, Darren Aronofsky all but officially has the "Wolverine 2" directing gig. We would've never guessed in a million years that this would happen (and we even tried to talk the filmmaker out of it). In a weekend Deadline article that also mentioned updates on "Pride & Prejudice & Zombies," it was reported that Aronofsky is so close to taking on the gig that talks have already turned to where the production will shoot.

To accommodate Aronofksy (who lives in New York) and Hugh Jackman's families, the sound stage portions of the film will be shot in the Big Apple. A March 2011 start date is being eyed which will allow the filmmaker plenty of time to be available for awards season press for his critically acclaimed psychodrama, "Black Swan" (The 83rd Academy Awards will take place on February 27). And to make any script tweaks if necessary. After the New York sequences are completed, the production will move to Japan to shoot the bulk of the film. The Christopher McQuarrie-penned script is based off the classic 1982 "Wolverine" mini-series created by Chris Claremont and artist Frank Miller that sets Logan in Japan, on a mission of the heart, if he can survive the ninja-clan the Hand first.

"X-Men Origins: Wolverine" was easily one of the worst films of 2009, so while it would be impossible to be much worse, Aronofsky will have his work cut out for him if he wants to completely overhaul the tone of the previous film. And we hope a "complete overhaul" is exactly what he has in mind.

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Save Some Space On Your Wall For The Stunning 'Black Swan' Teaser Posters

We're still a couple of months away from the release of "Black Swan," but the buzz from Toronto was very strong. Both director Darren Aronofsky and star Natalie Portman have become two of the most sought-after stars in town, and both our Toronto takes on the film were nearly raves -- Kevin saying that it "might be the best film of Aronofsky's career," and the E.I.C. calling it "mostly magnificent."

This writer will be catching it next week at the London Film Festival, and the film hits theaters Stateside December 1st, but in the meantime, Empire have premiered four international teaser posters for the film. And they're glorious.

While we're as fed up of endless posts on movie blogs about minimalist posters, the four modernist-inspired, vaguely Soviet teasers are pretty outstanding, and we'd sprout wings on our back for framed copies of all four. Check them all out full-size over at Empire. Note in the U.S. the release date has shifted ever so slightly from December 1 to December 3.

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Darren Aronofsky Turns Down 'Gangster Squad,' Nears Deal To Direct 'Wolverine 2'

It looks like Darren Aronofsky is eager to scratch the itch of a big budget blockbuster, and "X-Men Origins: Wolverine 2" may be the film to satisfy that urge.

Deadline reports that the director has turned down Warner Bros. offer to helm "Tales From The Gangster Squad," a period gangster movie about cops attempting to bring down notorious LA gangster Mickey Cohen. The move now leaves him wide open to take on 'Wolverine 2' and it looks like it's merely a matter of hammering out deal points.

In the wake of the festival success of "Black Swan," Aronofsky is ready to get real paid. He's apparently working out a deal that will see him bank $5 million against 5% of the gross of 'Wolverine 2.' That's one helluva incentive.

We're big fans of Aronofsky and are a bit dismayed he's seriously in contention to helm a boring franchise film, particularly when he has much more interesting films he could be doing instead. We guess we now have a reason to care about the second installment of the Hugh Jackman payday vehicle which takes place in Japan and will have ninjas or something. But if this means Aronofsky eventually gets to make his own "Inception," we suppose there is a potential silver lining in all of this.

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Angelina Jolie To Star With Brad Pitt In Darren Aronofsky's 'Tiger'? Film To Shoot In 2011?

Geez, speak of the devil. While we posted an open letter to Darren Aronofsky earlier today imploring him to think long and hard before signing on to "X-Men Origins: Wolverine 2," news arrives that one of the more interesting projects on his plate might be close to getting in front of cameras.

In an interview with Quien, screenwriter Guillermo Arriaga ("Babel," "Amores Perros") reveals that his previously announced adaptation of John Vaillant's forthcoming non-fiction book "The Tiger" for director Darren Aronofsky and star/producer Brad Pitt is set to begin location scouting later in the year.

"These days I'm traveling to New York to lend clarity to the last detail, in November would be doing a tour of Siberia to check locations," Arriaga said. However, most intriguingly, he indicates that the the film will shoot next year and Angelina Jolie will co-star with her partner, Brad Pitt.

The project, which will be Arriaga's first time writing a screenplay based on someone else's work, takes place in 1997 and follows an animal activist who must protect the small Siberian town he is in when a tiger begins attacking its inhabitants. "I decided to adapt this story because it is a great privilege to work with dedicated film like Darren Aronofsky and Brad Pitt," he said.

So, could this be why, despite offers for both 'Wolverine 2" and Warner Bros. "Tales Of The Gangster Squad," noise from the Aronofsky camp is quiet? We would guess that Aronofsky is probably getting the full picture of what shooting the "The Tiger" will require and more importantly, if he can put it all together, before making any decisions on the studio projects. "The Tiger" has been developing for a while and is set up as a co-production between Focus Features and Random House's film division.

At any rate, if Angelina Jolie is involved, and if it goes forward, she probably won't be able to commit to the film until late spring/early summer next year; she has already started shooting her untitled directorial debut. At the very least, what this indicates is that Aronofsky is still exploring one (and probably more) of the projects on the table at Protozoa before making his next move.

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An Open Letter to Darren Aronofsky: A Few Reasons Why You Might Want to Skip 'Wolverine 2'

The blogosphere is all abuzz this week with the one-two punch of comic book-related big screen deals: first, Zack Snyder, contested director of "300" and "Watchmen," will direct the Christopher Nolan-supervised, David Goyer-scripted reboot of the mother-0f-all-superhero-franchises, "Superman." But wait! As a follow-up to the "Superman" stories, it was noted that Darren Aronofsky, riding the high from all the festival buzz his supernatural ballet thriller "Black Swan" is garnering, was first in line for the gig and may still direct a high profile superhero franchise joint — 20th Century Fox's "Wolverine 2." Well, we're here to write a letter to you, Mr. Aronofsky, hoping you will stop for a moment to consider this career move.

You remain the rare director who has followed through on the initial visual and storytelling promise you displayed in your debut feature "Pi" and sophomore effort "Requiem for a Dream." Taking the second sequel to what was an inauspicious — no, embarrassing — opening to a new spin-off franchise ("X-Men Origins: Wolverine") is something that an eager up-and-coming music video or commercial director would take, not something that a seasoned professional like you, who spent an agonizingly long time getting his difficult sci-fi opus "The Fountain" off the ground, would rush into (hey, we like Hugh Jackman too, but 'Wolverine' was painful).

And besides, you have so many other cool projects that you could do instead. You are one of those directors who are perennially attached to about a dozen different projects at any given time, and we must say, these proposed projects all sound way more interesting than "Wolverine 2," whose script by Christopher McQuarrie reportedly pits the adamantium-clawed superhero against ninjas in Japan (been there, slashed that). These include the long-gestating (and, we reluctantly admit, most likely deceased) Noah's Ark project, more recent fare like an adaptation of non-fiction survival thriller "The Tiger" with Brad Pitt, highbrow literary adaptation "Serena" with Angelina Jolie, and most intriguingly, "Jackie," about Jackie Kennedy in the days following JFK's assassination, which would star your lovely partner Rachel Weisz. Hell, maybe MGM will get its shit together and you can do your worthy "Robocop" reboot.
Despite the relatively short gestation period between your Oscar-nominated drama "The Wrestler" and your sure-to-be-Oscar-nominated drama "Black Swan," these seem like projects which would take years to properly develop. "Wolverine 2" would be something that Fox would want, like, yesterday (they're probably already working on the action figures), without much time for artistic fussiness that takes time and makes for better movies. And it's not like something you're all that emotionally attached to. As you recently told MTV, "I didn't really have comic books. I didn't really know who Wolverine was until I met Hugh Jackman and got to know it." We know that some directors see these comic book things as passion projects but for you, it seems like another gig.

Still, as the LA Times pointed out, these big franchise movies can prove irresistible to directors, especially in the wonky, paradigm-shifting world of Hollywood, circa 2010. They cite super-genius Pixar auteur Brad Bird, who recently took the reins on the probably-not-called-"Mission: Impossible IV," and Marc Webb willingly signing on to the upcoming "Spider-Man" do-over (although, really, Webb should feel lucky to have been catapulted into the same sentence as yourself and Bird). Maybe doing "Wolverine 2" would be a frugal career move. After all, you worked on a "Batman Begins"-type reboot with Frank Miller before Christopher Nolan took command, and the Times piece cites Nolan, who balances his artistic proclivities with big budget responsibilities, as an inspiration to those off-kilter directors seeking entry to the franchise wheelhouse.

Plus, the material the "Wolverine 2" script is supposedly based on Chris Claremont and Frank Miller's run in the 1980s, which had the hero battling a squadron of ninjas while dealing with some sore emotional issues (some wounds never heal). If McQuarrie's script hits the tone of the comic book, which combined high-wire action with a deeply unsettled emotional core, then you're probably in good shape. We personally hope that maybe McQuarrie had mixed in some of Brian K. Vaughn's limited series "Logan" from a couple of years ago, which was the closest thing we've ever read to a Terrence Malick-penned superhero book (and covered similar thematic terrain to the Claremont/Miller series).

We have no doubt that you would do a fine job on Wolverine kicking ass in Japan; "The Fountain" in particular showed your uncanny knack for cross-cutting and recurrent images and "frames," hallmarks of comic books. We just think that maybe.... your skills could be used on a more worthy, more original project. Maybe you can get your comic book ya-yas out on some as-yet-unannounced original project and all that creativity and design work you've done over the years on a variety of comic book properties (among them, for a time, "Watchmen") will come flooding out in one giant gush (after all, didn't you get more of your "Perfect Blue" ya yas out in "Black Swan"?). If "Inception" and "District 9" has shown us anything, it's that occasionally studios will roll the dice on an original concept, even if it is expensive.

Obviously, the choice is up to you. But we're not the only ones questioning whether or not you can maintain your creative autonomy in a big studio set-up, especially one as mercurial as 20th Century Fox (not known as the most artistic friendly studio these days), who throws dozens of seasoned screenwriters at troubled scripts hoping that something (or anything) will stick, but what they usually end up with is "The A-Team." Well, Mr. Aronofsky, you're better than "The A-Team." And you're better than "Wolverine 2." C'mon, you and Rachel or you and Angie? Any number of drones can sleepwalk Hugh through this misguided passion project of his; why don't you do a musical with him one day and you'll both come out better in the end. Fine, even if you do end up making it, we suppose, we'll be first in line regardless.

Hugs and kisses,
The Playlist
(We'll be waiting for you in the space bubble.)

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Paul Greengrass, Francis Lawrence, Martin Campbell, Scott Cooper & Greg Berlanti Reportedly On Warner Bros. List For 'Gangster Squad'

With offers having been made already to Ben Affleck and most recently, Darren Aronofsky, but with no bites yet, Warner Bros. apparently has a list of other top candidates for the director's chair of the period crime flick, "Tales From Gangster Squad."

So what's it about? The film is based on a series of articles in the L.A. Times by Paul Lieberman and was picked up soon after it's publication in 2008 by Warner Bros. who, in turn, hired former L.A. cop turned novelist Will Beall to adapt. The major focus of Lieberman's article were a specialized L.A.P.D. unit set up in the '40s to fight the growing influence of the East Coast Mafia, namely that from infamous gangster Mickey Cohen, a mogul who started as muscle for Al Capone in Chicago. It definitely sounds like some very pulpy, very exciting material.

With that in mind, Latino Review claims that Warner Bros. has five other candidates ready to call should Aronofsky pass (and we presume this means Affleck has passed as well?). Those names? Paul Greengrass, Francis Lawrence, Martin Campbell, Scott Cooper and Greg Berlanti.

The names seem to indicate a few totally different directions for the film. The first three names are helmers with some serious action chops. Greengrass is a very interesting choice; his relationship with Universal right now is rocky-to-nonexistent but he is also attached to the gestating "Treasure Island." As for Lawrence and Campbell, they have both already worked under the WB banner and are known quantities to the studio which, if Zack Snyder's hire for "Superman" means anything, is an asset to landing the gig. Campbell is currently in post-production on "Green Lantern" which is already getting positive buzz with WB already thinking about a sequel. As for Lawrence, he delivered the megahit "I Am Legend" and was the studio's go-to guy to lead the reshoots to try and salvage "Jonah Hex."

But if those choices seem a bit obvious, the latter two do not. Scott Cooper only has one film under his belt, the small but big-hearted "Crazy Heart." Jumping to what is shaping up to be a big tentpole vehicle for WB seems like a big step for the director and a gamble for the studio. And while Berlanti has gained some heat at the studio for his script for "Green Lantern" (and he's being tasked with "The Flash" and "Green Lantern 2") his directorial jobs have been quite different in scope, centering on middle-of-the-road romcom fare like "The Broken Hearts Club" and the upcoming "Life As We Know It." We can only suppose that Cooper and Berlanti's names are there should the picture take on a more character driven approach.

As always, none of these directors could end up taking the gig, but Warner Bros. seem to be making decisions fairly quickly these days (those "Superman" directing rumors ended a lot sooner than we thought they would) so we wouldn't be surprised if something official came sooner rather than later.

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First 'Superman' Rumors Aren't Good: Zack Snyder Not WB's First Choice? David Goyer's Script A Mess?

Zack Snyder is directing "Superman." Not Matt Reeves or Duncan Jones. Zack Snyder. And we're going to have to start to get used to that. We've gone through shock, anger and denial, so acceptance can only be a matter of time, right? We mean, Warner Bros. and producer Christopher Nolan have had some time to pick the right guy, and some heavy hitters, from Robert Zemeckis to Darren Aronofsky, were in the mix. So, despite our dislike for Snyder's body of work (and to be fair, we enjoyed "Dawn of the Dead" very much), he must have come in with a pitch that blew everyone away, a take on the film that'll live up to Nolan's Batman movies. Right?

Maybe not. Vulture is reporting that Snyder wasn't Warner's first choice for the gig -- as previously reported, Ben Affleck turned it down, and possibly others. The issue, once again, is that the rights revert to the estates of the character's creators in 2013, and a film has to be in production by next year or the studio could face more lawsuits so time was of the essence in terms of appointing a helmer. "Knowledgeable insiders" say that David Goyer's script was "rushed" and "is still a bit of a mess," and that Warner Bros. wanted someone who would get the film done on time, rather than an auteur, someone like Aronofsky (who was apparently pursuing the project), who would wait for the script to be right.

This isn't exactly a huge validation of the pick of Snyder, and even he is said to have confided that the script needs work. To be fair, with Snyder finishing up "Sucker Punch" until the spring, the film likely won't shoot before next summer, so there's still time to get it right, but the short time frame and the Snyder/Goyer combo isn't filling us with confidence.

And what of that script? Details are still thin on exactly what the Man of Steel will be up to, but Vulture suggest that the story, by Goyer and Jonathan Nolan, features the hero as "a journalist traveling the world trying to decide if he should, in fact, even become Superman;" a sort of "Eat, Pray, Leap Tall Buildings In A Single Bound," if you will.

Vulture's a great site, and very rarely not on the money, but some of this doesn't quite add up. The rumor on Monday that General Zod would be the villain, for instance, doesn't gel with the logline, nor the pick of Snyder for what sounds like a rather meditative take on the character -- you don't hire the director of "300" for "Superman Takes A Year Off After College To Work Out What He Really Wants To Do With His Life And Meets Some, Like, Really Amazing People On A Beach In Goa."

Our best guess is that Goyer and Nolan have essentially recycled the structure of "Batman Begins" -- a jet-setting first act, with our hero traveling the world to work out whether humanity is worth protecting -- before returning to Metropolis for action-packed second and third acts. Drew McWeeny at HitFix hints at a possible immigration subtext (one that sounds a little reactionary, if we're being honest, although with some of the political moments in "The Dark Knight," that wouldn't be a huge surprise), but it's very unclear how much of a reality this might be. We're still a few years away from seeing it on the big screen, and things may even change between now and the start of filming, but we're sure more details will emerge sooner rather than later.

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Darren Aronofsky Begins Talks To Direct 'X-Men Origins: Wolverine 2,' Also Offered 'Tales From The Gangster Squad'

For a guy who professes not to be a comic book fan, Darren Aronofsky could have fooled us. Since breaking through with "Pi" and "Requiem for a Dream," he's been attached to a number of graphic novel-related properties, including "Watchmen," "Batman: Year One," the Manga adaptation "Lone Wolf and Cub" and "Robocop" (which yeah, isn't based on a comic book, but might as well be). With his latest film "Black Swan," picking up excellent buzz, he's been linked of late to "Preacher," "Superman" and "X-Men Origins: Wolverine 2."

Supposedly, Aronofsky was pursuing "Superman" fairly vigorously, but proved to be too much of a perfectionist for Warner Bros, and Zack Snyder landed the gig on Monday. As a result, both Vulture and Deadline are reporting that offers and/or talks are underway between 20th Century Fox and the director for the latter to helm the 'Wolverine' sequel. A number of names had been linked, including "Let Me In" director Matt Reeves, Robert Schwentke, who dropped out the running in favor of "R.I.P.D" and "The Osterman Weekend," and "Twilight: Eclipse" helmer David Slade, but franchise star Hugh Jackman was apparently keen to reteam with his friend and director on "The Fountain," and seems to have gotten his way.

Supposedly, Aronofsky met with studio head Tom Rothman to ensure that, if he signed on, he'd be given full creative control (man, we bet Gavin Hood wished he'd taken a similar meeting...), and that talks are now underway. It remains to be seen whether Aronofsky will sign on, but clearly, Fox are serious about trying to land the director. We've heard some very good buzz on Christopher McQuarrie's script, which follows Wolverine to Japan (if anyone happens to see it lying around, you know where to send it...), and with Aronofsky on board, this should be a sequel that far surpasses the original. Although, having said that, the film could be nothing but 90 minutes of Jackman clubbing baby seals, and it would still far surpass the original. According to Jackman, filming will kick off in March/April next year, for a Summer 2012 release.

Just to cement how in-demand Aronofsky has become, Vulture also report that, as a consolation prize from Warner Bros., he's been offered "Tales From The Gangster Squad," a period gangster movie about cops attempting to bring down notorious LA gangster Mickey Cohen. Ben Affleck got a similar offer last week, but turned it down, so WB have moved on to Aronofsky. Supposedly 'Wolverine 2' has the edge, but that could all change in the next few days.

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Darren Aronofsky Rumored As Candidate To Direct 'Preacher'

We're paraphrasing here -- it's something we read on another site recently but can't seem to find now -- but it more or less goes like this: Darren Aronofsky just made a movie about lesbian ballerinas but people still want him to make a comic movie. The sentiment is one we share; coming off "Black Swan," one of the most ambitious and original films of the year, we're not sure why Hollywood or geeks keep throwing boring comic book material at the guy or why people want him to do it.

Following talk of "Wolverine 2" and "Superman: The Man Of Steel," Newsarama (via MTV) is claiming that a source has informed them that Aronofsky is one of Columbia Pictures' top choices to direct the long-developing comic "Preacher." Please note, this is a "choice" which means his name is most likely on a list with a bunch of other people as is the usual case for this kind of thing.

The series, published between 1995 and 2000, follows a priest who comes into contact with a supernatural being called Genesis and goes on a mission to find an absentee God, and has seen a number of directors circle the project. "Tank Girl" director Rachel Talalay was attached for some time, and "Daredevil" writer-director Mark Steven Johnson was working on a version for HBO. More recently, John August was hired last year to script it for Sam Mendes and Joe Carnahan most recently expressed interest in the material.

At any rate, just add it to the list of projects being sent Aronofsky's way and don't expect it to be the last linked to him. He's an acclaimed director with geek cred so we're sure his name is on many studio lists as their choices for franchise projects, but it doesn't necessarily mean it's going to happen. For us, we'd rather see him continue to pursue projects that are closer to his heart.

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Ben Affleck Was In The Running To Direct 'Superman'; Natalie Portman For Lois Lane?

The latest picture to be driving the rumor mill that keeps sites like ours busy is clearly the Christopher Nolan-produced "Superman;" after months of inactivity, the project sprung into life last week with Tony Scott, Jonathan Liebesman, Duncan Jones, Matt Reeves and Zack Snyder all being named as prospective candidates to direct. Darren Aronofsky joined them last night, and now two more snippets of info have come to light — one of a director on Nolan's list who now seems to have been ruled out, the other of a potential cast member.

First up, Heat Vision report that Ben Affleck, whose star is freshly reborn in a big way after the critical and commercial success of "The Town," met on the project last week in a directing capacity (although Affleck, of course, has donned the Superman gear in the past, in his excellent performances as 1950s TV star George Reeves in "Hollywoodland"). However, it seems that Affleck is "no longer pursuing" the project — which sounds like the decision came from Affleck. While he doesn't have anything lined up after the currently-filming Terrence Malick film, and who knows when that'll wrap, the hyphenate may be keen on using his new cred to makes something more personal. Perhaps a Boston-set crime drama?... (Oh, and kudos to the commenter who called this one last week)

Secondly, Moviehole report that according to their source who has recently worked for Aronofsky, not only has the director been in discussions for the project for some time, but that Warner Bros. are keen to cast his "Black Swan" star Natalie Portman as Lois Lane in the project. The source stresses that things are still early, and we reckon that is something very important to note. Right now, we'd lay even money that all of these directors are just names on a list, that Nolan and studio are going to be talking to plenty more people, and that they will take their time to find the right person with the right vision for the job. With a tentative December 2012 release date slotted, they still have some time put the pieces together.

As for Aronofsky he's also being courted by Hugh Jackman to direct the Christopher McQuarrie-penned sequel to "Wolverine," and has a biopic of Jackie Kennedy in development, to star his partner Rachel Weisz, so he's not short of options, particularly with the strong buzz on "Black Swan." Nolan's set to meet other directorial candidates this week, so it could be anyone's. But so long as we don't end up seeing Zack Snyder's "Superman: The Legends of Ga'hoole," we don't mind who lands it...

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Darren Aronofsky Joins List Of Rumored Contenders For 'Superman'

And so it goes. Yet another name has cropped up for the "Superman: The Man Of Steel" directing gig, and this time it's none other than Darren Aronofsky.

The filmmaker — who was linked earlier this year as a contender for "Wolverine 2" — has, according to the LA Times, discussed the job with Christopher Nolan, who is godfathering and mentoring the entire project for Warner Bros. & Legendary Pictures (his brother Jonah Nolan and "The Dark Knight" scribe David S. Goyer have been working on the script). Now, before everyone's brains explode, let's evaluate this for a moment.

Aronofsky has another potential Oscar vehicle in "Black Swan" and should it pick up steam and awards through the fall, he will be in an even stronger position to continue making films based on his own, original ideas. Would he really want to jump from personal projects to a big studio tentpole that will not only be overseen by Nolan, but have input from DC and Warner Bros.? Somehow, we doubt it.

The flipside to that argument comes from a recent interview with MTV in which he said, "Even though I've been attached to all these comic book [movies], I never really was a comic book kid growing up. I didn't really have comic books. I didn't really know who 'Wolverine' was until I met Hugh Jackman and got to know it." "Of course, I grew up with Batman and Superman and Spider-Man a little bit, but I'm not the biggest comic book fan, even though I've been attached to a lot of them," Aronofsky added. "It would be fun to do one, [but] it's just finding the right situation, the right project."

So is this the right project? Or just Nolan running through this list of dream candidates to see if any of them will bite? Time will tell and while its a match made in heaven on paper, Aronofksy's been attached to comic book properties before, and they've never borne fruit largely for the reasons he's explained above. Will he take the meeting with Nolan? Hell yeah, but it remains to be seen if anything comes of it and we're pretty skeptical that it will.

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