John C. Reilly sucks

I don’t know who’s at the top of the Most Unlikely Leading Man list, but John C. Reilly has gotta be on there somewhere — talented though he may be, he’s not what anyone would describe as “traditionally handsome”. And yet over the past few years he’s steadily gone from reliable supporting player and porn sidekick to the main name on the poster.

Reilly takes center stage again for CIRQUE DU FREAK, slipping some fake fangs in his mug to play a vampire in Universal’s adaptation of the popular (?) children’s book series. Paul Weitz (brother of GOLDEN COMPASS director Chris Weitz) will produce and direct.

The story involves a schoolboy who attends a bizarre sideshow and becomes the “assistant” to Reilly’s undead performer, and eventually finds himself a half-vampire and the catalyst between rival bloodsucker clans. There are 12 books in the series, so the studio is obviously hoping for a franchise with some HARRY POTTER-ish longevity.