The second trip to the big screen for Fahrenheit 451 -- a long and tortured journey that has seen the project pass through the hands of Mel Gibson and others -- seems to finally be gathering speed for Frank Darabont, who's been attached as director and screenwriter since 2001. In fact, according to Ain't It Cool News, Darabont has chosen and signed his star.

For those unfamiliar with the Ray Bradbury novel (first adapted for film by François Truffaut in 1966), we can only question the methods of your freshman English teachers, and tell you the story takes place in a dystopian future when books have been outlawed and the population is entertained by in-ear radios and interactive television. Fahrenheit's protagonist is a "fireman" (book burner) named Guy Montag who, as the story begins, has no qualms about his job. As time goes by, however...well, we're not in the business of spoiling things here, but suffice it to say that the main character in any good story is bound to go on some kind of personal journey.

Up 'til now, Darabont's Fahrenheit has been too distant a prospect to generate much in the way of casting rumors, but with the director rolling out his adaptation of Stephen King's The Mist this fall, speculation is starting to heat up, which is where AICN's report comes in -- the same tipster who first floated Billy Crudup's involvement in Watchmen is now saying that Guy Montag will be played by Darabont's Green Mile star, Tom Hanks.

We're talking about a classic 54-year-old book, so there's bound to be squabbling over the idea of Hanks as Montag, but he really isn't a bad choice for the role; in fact, considering that Gibson and Tom Cruise were attached to the part during earlier stages of production, he might just be the best.

Source: Ain't It Cool News