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The A-List Seen Star Wars? Empire presents the next blockbusters to rule your world! SIGNS The pitch: "I see crop circles..." A Pennsylvanian farmer finds mysterious graffiti in his wheat fields. The spin: Completing a trilogy twistastic, otherworldly thrillers, M. Night Shyamalan turns his expert attentions to the phenomenon of spooky messages made out of crushed wheat. The highly original idea centres on a farmer-pastor (Mel Gibson) who, in the midst of a crisis of faith, finds a 400-foot crop circle in the middle of his cornfield. Is it a message from God, an alien civilisation or just a bunch of hoaksters up to no good? "I enjoy asking the kind of questions that people don't necessarily know the answers to, like, 'Is there life after death?' or, 'Are aliens real?' the elusive Shyamalan says of his latest trip down weirdo avenue. "Although I think they're hoaxes, crop circles are intriguing and seemed like a nice starting point for a creepy story." With the trailers suggesting more than a hint of Close Encounters, Shyamalan is even further stepping into "new Spielberg" territory. For Gibson, the opportunity to work with the new wunderkind was too tempting to turn down. "He has real vision. I'm still figuring out the movie business. When I was his age, I was being toilet trained." The bottom line: After The Sixth Sense and the more sombre Unbreakable, Shyamalan has announced himself as one of the most daring yet commercial filmmakers in Hollywood. Now with a pair of brilliantly elusive trailers and the promise of as much humour as terror, the stars are aligned for something special. ETA: SEPTEMBER 13 EMPIRE ESTIMATED BOX OFFICE: $275m |