Catherine Hardwicke

Miss Bala was the toast of the Cannes Film Festival when it debuted in 2011. Critics heaped hosannas upon the taut thriller based on a real-life incident wherein a Mexican beauty queen was discovered in a truck with a crew of gang members and a shipment of munitions. With ruthless economy, the film detailed the process by which Laura Zuñíga was forced to cooperate with the narcos, eventually earning the nickname of Miss Bala (Spanish for “Miss Bullet,” a pun on the glamour pageant Miss Baja). Like Sicario but a few years ahead of schedule, Miss Bala depicted the south-of-the-border crime culture through the eyes of an unwilling participant. Unlike most drug-war dramas, it’s not defined by heroism or the drive for power — the movie’s fueled by one woman’s perpetual state of stunned terror.

Back in February the rights to Tomb Raider landed at Warner Bros. with the studio tapping Divergent screenwriter Evan Daugherty to help reboot the franchise. And in July we heard rumors that WB and MGM were looking to hire a woman to direct the new Tomb Raider film — specifically that they were seeking a “Michelle MacLaren type” to fill the director’s chair. A new rumor suggests that the studios now have a shortlist of directors which unsurprisingly includes Kathryn Bigelow. Dream big, guys.

A long time ago, Catherine Hardwicke was the director of the critically acclaimed 'Thirteen.' Then she became the director of 'Twilight' and 'Red Riding Hood' and a lot of people started scratching their heads. Will 'Plush' be her triumphant return as a director to watch? Maybe. Who knows. The real story is that the gorgeous Emily Browning is in talks to join the cast.