Simmons also plans to reprise the role in the third film, and joked about the possibility of spin-offs. " 'J. Jonah Jameson, The Amazing Newspaper-Man' " he said, slipping into character. "That sure does have a nice ring to it."

• X NO LONGER MARKS THE SPOT: The long-stalled "Superman" movie project is finally moving forward and in the right direction. Filmmaker McG is out, and his replacement will be Bryan Singer, who helmed the "X-Men" movies. Singer is also bringing along "X2" screenwriters Dan Harris and Mike Dougherty, who are reportedly starting from scratch.

Again, that's good news — but it also throws the "X-Men" franchise into turmoil. It's not official, but the 20th Century Fox is pushing to start a third film in the franchise next spring and now will most likely have to replace Singer.

Here's a quick suggestion for studio officials: How about bringing in Joss Whedon ("Buffy the Vampire Slayer," "Angel"), who's currently writing one of the monthly "X-Men" comics?

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E-mail: jeff@desnews.com