This may come as news to some of you. In addition to being President during one of the most tumultuous times in US history, Abraham Lincoln was secretly also a vampire hunter.

Well, at least that’s how history goes in the upcoming film Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter. Produced by Tim Burton and directed by Timur Bekmambetov, the film is an adaptation of the Seth Grahame-Smith book about Lincoln and his quest to destroy the undead after his mother is killed by bloodsucking vampires.

We’ve got the first trailer for the film to share with you today. To be honest, we weren’t expecting much from this but it’s nice to be pleasantly surprised once in awhile. The pic, at least from this trailer, actually looks pretty good. You will, of course, have to judge for yourselves.

Check out the trailer after the break. Look for Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter, which stars Benjamin Walker, Rufus Sewell, and Dominic Cooper to hit theaters on June 22.

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If we didn’t know any better, we’d think that an adaptation of Seth Grahame-Smith’s Pride and Prejudice and Zombies was unfilmable.

Since it was announced that the film adaptation was around the way, the film has gone through several directors including Mike White and David O. Russell, but it seems the bottle has finally landed on Craig Gillespie. Deadline has the scoop.

Lionsgate has made it official. Craig Gillespie has been set to direct Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, the movie adaptation of the Seth Grahame-Smith novel that mixes the 1813 Jane Austen classic with a legion of bloodthirsty zombies. Gillespie, who directed the critically acclaimed art house film Lars and the Real Girl, most recently directed the Fright Night remake that stars Colin Farrell.

“We are so excited to have Craig Gillespie on board this film,” said Alli Shearmur, Lionsgate president of Motion Picture Production. “His sensibility spans from genre-bending horror to elegant character-driven comedy, which is perfect for this movie.”

With new man on the horror scene Gillespie taking on the film, and Natalie Portman’s handsomecharlie production company, the film may actually turn out to be a great project. Finally.

She already won the hearts of geeks everywhere with her portrayal of Ramona Flowers in Edgar Wright’s Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World. Now, she’s targeting the rapidly growing horror audience with the upcoming film adaptation of the novel Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter.

Winstead will the joining the film as Lincoln’s wife, who fights alongside the former president as he takes on the legion of the dead. Not long ago it was announced that the titular role of Lincoln was to be played by Kinsey’s Benjamin Walker. From THR:

Timur Bekmambetov is directing Vampire Hunter, based on the book by Seth Grahame-Smith. It’s Bekmambetov’s first movie since the 2008 hit Wanted, and tells the story of how Lincoln fought vampires during the Civil War. Dominic Cooper and Anthony Mackie also star in Vampire Hunter.

The novel by Seth Grahame-Smith was written as Lincoln’s “secret diary” that was discovered decades later, and plays in with actual historical events to add authenticity. Fox is currently working on pre-production of the film and should have a shoot date set by the end of the month with a release date sure to follow.

Whenever a new high-profile project gets going rumors pretty much instantly start to circulate concerning who is writing, directing or acting in a particular film or TV show. In the case of the upcoming Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter, we already know some pieces of the puzzle.

For example, we already know Timor Bekmambetov is the director, Seth Grahame-Smith is the writer (based on his own novel) and that Bekmambetov, Jim Lemley and Tim Burton are producig. What we don’t know is who will be taking on the titular role of Abe — although we now have a few clues who it might be.

Over at Deadline (yes, again) they’ve got some exclusive scoop on who some of the actors, both known and unknown, who are in contention for the role. Some of the names being mentioned include Benjamin Walker, James D’Arcy, Adrien Brody, Oliver Jackson-Cohen, Josh Lucas, and Timothy Olyphant.

You probably recognize some of those names and some you probably don’t. It’s an interesting mix of actors and from what we’ve seen pretty much any of them would probably make a fine Abe Lincoln.

However, if we had to pick, one our choice would be Timothy Olyphant. Even though one or two of us here at The Flickcast don’t understand or respect his talent, the rest of us do and think he would do a great job.

What do you think? Is Olyphant the right man for the gig? Well, whatever happens, we will know soon enough.

Look for the film to hit theaters on June 22, 2012.

Remember watching Zombieland and wondering why School of Rock and Nacho Libre screenwriter Mike White makes a 10 second cameo in the first half of the film? Well, it seems that’s because White is a diehard zombie fan. (Who isn’t?)

That love for zombies is a big reason why White is now at the top of the list to direct the adaptation of the Seth Grahame-Smith book Pride and Prejudice and Zombies. For those unaware, the journey to get this film a crew has actually been a trying one. Here’s the breakdown from the LA Times:

The quirky auteur David O. Russell had been on board to direct the movie. But last month the “Flirting with Disaster” filmmaker decamped to make the video game adaptation “Drake’s Fortune.” That created a vacuum behind the camera, and four weeks weeks later, no filmmaker has been selected to replace him (although Lionsgate says a choice is expected soon).

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While Tim Burton is getting ready to unleash his interpretation of Alice in Wonderland onto the world this Friday, he’s already planning on sinking his producing teeth into another piece of historical fiction. Seth Grahame-Smith, the author behind the cult classic Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, got his newest historical/horror hybrid released yesterday, in the form of Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter.

The premise is about as black and white as it sounds. In the time during Lincoln’s presidential term, he is forced to wage war against blood-sucking demons before they’re able to bring down the free world. According to Heat Vision, some gentlemen known in the genre have already taken interest.

Tim Burton and Timur Bekmambetov, the producers behind last fall’s 9, will be producing the novel for a big screen adaptation. This fits right into the directors’ current resume, as Bekmambetov got his US popularity from his work on the Russain Night Watch films, and Burton is no stranger to the world of gothic vampire-like scenarios.

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