The writers strike may have stopped a number of pictures dead in their tracks, and delayed the beginning of countless others that would be moving ahead right now if they could, but not having anyone around to pawn off those silly writing duties to apparently isn't enough to stop the merry-go-ground deal making from keeping Variety primed with stories that would make it appear as if everything in Hollywood is moving along as fast and efficient as it ever has.

One would think that not having anyone around to come up with a good story would make the studios a little apprehensive about signing deals with unpredictable star talent that, as Brad Pitt has recently shown, can be quite temperamental about writing they cannot control. Who then could a studio down on their luck find to star in their pic with no story?

How about a man who has starred in many-a-pic that had no story? (Come on Dean, I love you bro, you know I do, but a random series of catastrophic weather events is not a story unless you went to the Michael Bay school of film making):

Universal Pictures will turn the life of Joe Namath into a feature film, with Jake Gyllenhaal playing the Hall of Fame quarterback. >David Hollander will write the script once the writers strike is over. Mad Chance's Andrew Lazar will produce. Jimmy Walsh, who runs Namanco Prods., exec produces.

Walsh said he and Namath OK'd the movie after a long pursuit by Lazar, a strong take by Hollander and the belief that the athletic Gyllenhaal was the right actor to play him.

Yes, Donnie Darko is Joe Namath.

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