That sound you just heard? Something like a cross between an asthma inhaler wheeze and a joystick being furiously toggled? That's the sound of nerds reacting to this news: Nerd auteur Sam Raimi has signed to direct a live-action version of nerd bible World of Warcraft. Yes the fantastical computer game about mages and orcs and other horrible things will be a movie, and the Evil Dead/Spider-Man maestro will ably steer the battleship. God protect us. [Variety]

Slightly closer to the middle of the nerd spectrum is Comedy Central's bawdy cartoon show Drawn Together, which had a great first season but then crumpled under the weight of its own crudeness. Anyway, Comedy Central is reviving the property to make a direct-to-video movie release about what happens when the characters realize their show has been canceled. I hope Foxxy sings! [THR]

That grunt-laughing thing from Girls Next Door, Kendra Wilkinson, has had her E! reality show renewed for another season. The Comeback only got one season. As did Freaks & Geeks, Undeclared, and My So-Called Life. Kendra gets two. At least. [Variety]

Could Jeff Bridges finally get the Oscar he so richly deserves? His new film Crazy Heart, about an aging country singer, just got picked up by the white-hot Fox Searchlight. He's apparently quite good in the film, which costars Robert Duvall and Maggie Gyllenhaal. I mean, really, if he didn't get it for Fearless or Lebowski, can he get it for anything? [THR]

If you can't DVR Ugly Betty or stay home on Friday nights to watch it next season, don't worry! You'll have another chance to watch the show, albeit in a slightly more annoying format. The TV Guide Channel has struck up a deal to air episodes of the show two weeks after their original air date. So you can watch Betty be crazy and ugly in a tiny square while a slowly-moving list of what else is on trudges on uselessly below it. Sounds fun! [Variety]

What will Johnny Depp do next? Nobody knows! Likely, though, it'll be strange and childlike with a slight hint of menace creeping at the edges. [THR]

Old-timey actress Jami Gertz (catch her on Entourage on Sunday?) has formed a production company called Lime Orchard Productions, and they're just now getting started on developing its first properties! First up is a James Mangold-directed feature called Words, based on the same-titled book about growing up in foster care. Also on their plate is the tentatively (and fabulously) titled I Wanted Zac, But I Got Jack Black, a high school project for the Disney Channel. Everyone's grown up since Lost Boys, huh? [Variety]

I am told...that "once you find out who the villain is, you'll know who's playing it." That should lead to speculation that Dylan Baker's character of Dr. Curt Connors will ultimately turn into The Lizard as he did in the comic books.

There's one other character that's been set up but is a real longshot — Daniel Gillies, who plays John Jameson, the astronaut fiance of Mary Jane in Spider-Man 2. In the comics he becomes the villain Man-Wolf. Raimi has said in the past that he wants the best actors to play the villains in the movie, not necessarily the most famous.

And don't even get her started on The Kangaroo's back story! (Seriously, though—Philip Seymour Hoffman, if you're listening, you were born to play the part.)

• EXCLUSIVE: Sony Locks In Sam Raimi & Tobey Maguire in 'Spider-Man 4'; Studio May Shoot '4' and '5' At The Same Time [Deadline Hollywood Daily]

We're pretty sure the inclusion of Powers in their list of 14 franchises to kill was a serendipitous fluke (it's actually pegged to The Mummy 3 and includes Indiana Jones and Friday the 13th as well), but Wednesday's revival news nevertheless reinforced the urgency of euthanizing bad ideas before they can strike again. And why stop at 14? As long as we have the ax out, we might as well finish the job with another half-dozen after the jump.

·Beverly Hills Cop: Sure, we summoned a bit of cautious optimism when we first heard about BHC 4. But word that franchise heir Brett Ratner wants a PG-13 and Eddie Murphy's continued commitment to mediocrity has us second-guessing. Kill it.

·Star Wars: Nothing short of George Lucas encased in carbonite will likely stop his molesty corruption of a galaxy far, far away. But a blog can dream. Kill it.

· Transformers: Wait — never mind! Thanks, Shia.

· Spider-Man: Heresy? Maybe. But if Sam Raimi is more preoccupied with spinoffs and Jack Ryan than Sony's multi-billion empire, just accept the sign. Kill it first, before Joel Schumacher hijacks it.

· Hostel: How much would it cost us to have the pleasure of snuffing this ourselves in a dank Eastern European abattoir? We'll get the money, like, yesterday. Kill it — slowly.

· The Lost Boys: Not a franchise so much as a misbegotten, Haim-wounding attempt at brand-milking, bound to get worse before it gets better. Kill it.

• Running on Empty: 14 Movie Franchises We Think Should Stop [EW]

"I love working with Bruce Campbell... He’s super willing to do anything to make it right. He’s a very funny guy, but mostly he’s got this quality where he will physically do anything to get the shot done right, so I would love to work with Bruce again because I’d love to test those limits. I’d love to make another Evil Dead picture. And actually that’s in the wheelhouse. I’d like to work on it with my brother Ivan [Raimi] when he comes up next week.“ [Geeks of Doom]

"Then Raimi officially threw his hat in the ring again: 'I love Spider-Man. I'm hoping I'm well rested enough to embrace it and I'm hoping Sony wants me to do it. If all of those things come together, I would love to do it. There are a lot of unknowns about the future.'

"Raimi doesn't envision changing up his cast. 'I'd hate to re-cast anybody in the future, I can't imagine that.'" [GetTheBigPicture]

And, no, I don't want to see Kristen Dunst replaced!

Of course, with Raimi's horror project Drag Me to Hell also in the pipeline between now and then, the Paramount deal doesn't bode well for Raimi's involvement in the next three Spider-Man films rumored to be on Sony's production slate through 2015. That's not to say his deft touch with big-budget emo heroism is disappearing in the transition, according to Variety:

The intention is to generate several films Raimi would develop and direct, featuring Ryan at a younger, more formative point in his career than previously depicted. One invention the studio is considering is to set the film in the present, with the action triggered by a global threat.

• Raimi, Paramount Revive Jack Ryan [Variety]

[Ad via Digital Variety]

• Previously: They Aren't Kidding When They Say Amy Pascal Can Run A Studio Like A Man [Defamer]

Anyway, we did notice something of note: Topher Grace, who plays baddie Eddie Brock aka Venom in the third installment, was chatting rather fussily about hats — ball cap or golf cap? decisions, decisions! — with director Sam Raimi. In this Slugvideo, you can hear him specifically say, "I will wear it if you want me to." (You can also hear an annoying assistant wrangling passers-by.) What a sport, Toph.

It really is moments like this one that restore our faith in the collaborative, creative endeavor that is moviemaking. Thank you, Topher and Sam, for sending us into the weekend with such a warm feeling in our usually coal-black hearts.

• Slugvideo: Topher Grace Does Not Like Golf Hats [The Slug]