According to Variety, Scarlett has signed on to topline director Barry Levinson’s heist film Brilliant, from Millennium Films and Emmett/Furla Films. The film, which will head into production in September, follows Scarlett as a jewel thief who teams up with a conman to pull off the biggest heist in history. However, the duo’s relationship is fraught with twists and turns.

Gillian Gorfil and Elizabeth Shorten wrote the screenplay, based on a story by Gorfil and Nicholas Lorentz. Brilliant is being produced by Scarlett’s mother Melanie Johansson, Avi Lerner, Randall Emmett and Gorfil. Boaz Davidson, George Furla, Danny Dimbort and John Thompson will executive produce.

Lerner expects the movie to be a wide release in September 2007.

MAXIM Magazine, the #1 best-selling men’s lifestyle magazine in the country and the world, unveiled their highly anticipated 7th annual Hot 100 list – and Scarlett made it to #6! (She’s after Eva Longoria, Jessica Alba, Lindsay Lohan, Angelina Jolie and Stacy Keibler.) That’s fantastic, so congratulations Scarlett!

We have now successfully moved to our new domain address, scarlett-fan.com. Please update your bookmarks if you have not already. I want to say thanks to each one of you who left nice comments and emailed me. The site is not going anywhere and will continue with daily updates on our favorite actress and her career.

Scarlett is featured in People’s annual “Most Beautiful” portfolio, currently on stands. Jess Cagle, People’s editor at large, describes her as “amazing. Twenty-one years old. She’s got a great future ahead of her. A great actress. We did declare that she does have the best cleavage? What’s so sexy about Scarlett Johansson is, at such a young age, she has such talent. And she’s also, as she told us, so comfortable in her own skin. The way she carries herself is really unique. She has a very unique presence, and obviously physically ravishing.” ( source )

If anyone has scans to contribute, please send them in because I am not able to get a copy here in Scotland.

Match Point is now out on DVD in North America so go and pick up your copy to see Scarlett’s performance as Nola Rice. The UK released is slated for 8th May. DVD captures will be up shortly.

‘Unexpected Dreams: Songs From the Stars’ is now also out and features Scarlett’s sultry version of ‘Summertime’. Extra has a video clip promoting the release and Scarlett appears in the end for a few seconds.

Both products are available for order from Amazon.

Huge thanks to Pat for informing me that Box Office Mojo has announced a US release date for Scoop. According to the site, the fans will be able to see Scarlett and Woody Allen’s latest collaboration in cinema starting from July 28th, 2006.

According to Evening Standard, Woody Allen is set to make his third film in London after scrapping a Paris-based project because of spiralling costs. The article names Scarlett and Kate Winslet as thought to be in the running for the leading role.

Domestic distribution rights to Woody Allen’s Scoop, which is currently in post-production, have been acquired by Focus Features. Focus has also acquired rights to the feature for Australia and New Zealand. Focus president James Schamus made the announcement today.

Allen commented, “I’ve always been very blessed by having great people distribute my films over the years and this good fortune continues with Focus, a company I have enormous admiration for. I had a great time shooting Scoop. I was over my head acting with Hugh Jackman and Ian McShane, who are both amazing, and of course Scarlett Johansson, who I knew was sexier than me and smarter but she also turned out to be faster and funnier.”

For further information, read full article in the Press Archive.

According to Teen Hollywood, Scarlett, Britney Spears and Lindsay Lohan all battling it out for the lead role in Penelope Spheeris’ The Gospel According To Janis, an upcoming film on the life and death of Janis Joplin.

Apparently the director has already said that Pink would be her first choice for the part, but the singer has decided not to pursue the project. Pink explains, “I dropped out of it. Scheduling conflicts. Plus they’re trying to turn it into some circus pop contest – who’s the ‘it’ girl who wants to play Janis.”

“Janis was so much deeper than that.”