Eastwood in talks to star in 'Trouble'

EastwoodClint Eastwood said "Gran Torino" would be his final film in front of the camera, but with his next directorial effort, "A Star Is Born," delayed, he's decided to un-retire as a thesp for "Trouble With the Curve." Robert Lorenz, Eastwood's Malpaso partner, is in talks to make his directorial debut with the Warner Bros. pic written by Randy Brown. Eastwood is in talks to play an aging baseball scout who's losing his sight and decides to take a road trip to Atlanta with his daughter to eye a hot prospect. Malpaso will produce, but the company won't start its search for the female lead until Eastwood and Lorenz close their deals. Sarah Schechter will oversee the project for WB, which had difficulty tracking Brown down, as the script has been kicking around Hollywood for several years. Eastwood had been searching for a project to topline ever since Beyonce Knowles announced her pregnancy at the MTV Video Music Awards in August, which pushed back the start of production on the remake of "A Star Is Born" to what will likely be late spring or early summer next year. While Eastwood starred in and helmed 2008's "Gran Torino" for Warner Bros., the last he starred in but did not direct was the 1993 thriller "In the Line of Fire," which was directed by Wolfgang Petersen. Lorenz has served as assistant director on several of Eastwood's movies, including "Mystic River" and "Million Dollar Baby." WB will release Eastwood's next film, "J. Edgar," on Nov. 9. The Dustin Lance Black-scripted pic, which stars Leonardo DiCaprio, Armie Hammer, Naomi Watts and Judi Dench, is being eyed as a contender in the upcoming awards season. Contact Jeff Sneider at jeff.sneider@variety.com