For his next trick, Johnny Depp will play famed magician Harry Houdini. Continuing his tradition of wearing silly hats, the actor is in negotiations to star in 'The Secret Life of Houdini: The Making of America's First Superhero' (now that's a title), which is said to be in the vein of an 'Indiana Jones' story.

According to THR, Depp will play the legendary magician in the new film from Dean Parisot, the director of 'Red 2,' which features Houdini as not just a magician, but an investigator of the occult -- so it's definitely territory with which Depp is familiar, given that he gets to wear a hat and spend time in the supernatural realm. Since he's been in several Tim Burton films, as well as movies like 'The Ninth Gate' and 'From Hell,' he's surely a pro by now.

The film is based on the book of the same name by William Kalush and Larry Sloman, though we wouldn't be surprised if the title gets shortened a bit for the big screen. Depp's last two films haven't been particularly successful, with both 'Transcendence' and 'The Lone Ranger' failing to impress critics. He's currently working on 'Black Mass,' in which he plays notorious criminal Whitey Bulger before he reprises the role of the Mad Hatter for 'Alice in Wonderland 2.' Also on the horizon: 'Pirates of the Caribbean 5' and 'Mortdecai.' No idea where this Houdini film will fit into his schedule, but maybe he can pull some free time out of one of his silly hats.

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