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Bring On the POKER MOVIES!!! By Charley, (DT) September 27, 2004 9:36 PM PT

The recent tidal wave of poker popularity was bound to wash over Hollywood eventually. ?We'll be seeing several poker-themed films in the next few years. ?"Lucky You," written and directed by Curtis Hanson ("8 Mile") has recently acquired a leading man in Eric Bana ("Hulk," "Troy"), according to sources close to the project. ?And another poker picture, as yet untitled, will star poker playing actor Ben Affleck ("Jersey Girl," "Paycheck"). "Lucky You" tells the story of a young man trying to beat the odds and take home a world championship in poker. ?Bana will play the lead in this poker drama that was co-written by Academy Award winner Eric Roth ("Forrest Gump"). ?No word on release dates at this time. Ben Affleck will also be appearing in a poker movie, which is definitely no stretch for him considering his recent victory at the California State Poker Championship. ?Affleck flushed and full housed his way through 90 competitors--many of them top poker professionals--and, along with over $300,000, earned a seat at the World Poker Tour Championship next April. Knowing the game will come in handy for Affleck's role in the upcoming unnamed poker movie. ?Directed by Zak Penn, the film is going to be a fake documentary, according to Moviehole. ? The article compared the upcoming project to a film by Christopher Guest ("Waiting for Guffman," "Best in Show"), where the actors will get to know their characters and then improvise the scenes. ?No details about the story were revealed. ?Penn is the screenwriter for upcoming "Elektra" and "Spy Hunter" and his directing credits include "Incident at Loch Ness." ?A release date has not been announced. So there's your sneak peak at a couple of the undoubtedly numerous poker flicks we'll be seeing in the future. ?More news on these projects as it develops.