Is Jolie the new Maleficent?

Ah, we love a good casting rumour on a Monday morning, especially one as juicy as this.

It seems that Disney have their eye on Angelina Jolie to play the titular Maleficent in their new twist on Sleeping Beauty .

Last week, the studio announced that screenwriter Linda Woolverton, who most recently scripted their Alice In Wonderland sequel, was working on a screenplay entitled Maleficent , which is set to re-tell Sleeping Beauty from the point of view of the evil step-mother.

The LA Times report that “Jolie is keen on the film and would like to sign on to play the titular villain”, even though no deal has been brokered just yet.

Could Jolie’s involvement entirely depend on whether Tim Burton jumps aboard the project? It’s certainly been suggested that is the case. Jolie is currently looking for a new film to show face in after shooting new thriller The Tourist .

Apparently, she is “actively engaging with the material and could, according to sources, very well star in the film when all is said and done”.

Obvious choice, but a good one? Thoughts below...

Josh Winning has worn a lot of hats over the years. Contributing Editor at Total Film, writer for SFX, and senior film writer at the Radio Times. Josh has also penned a novel about mysteries and monsters, is the co-host of a movie podcast, and has a library of pretty phenomenal stories from visiting some of the biggest TV and film sets in the world. He would also like you to know that he "lives for cat videos..." Don't we all, Josh. Don't we all.