In August of 2009 we found out that a movie about one of the planet’s most infamous killers, Richard Kuklinski, was being delayed because the producer at that time wanted Channing Tatum for the role. Many of you spoke up about who you’d like to see play the part, and we later found out that one of those names, Mickey Rourke, had been cast in the role.

Now comes a bit of a surprise: there’s actually another separate movie based on Kuklinski, better known as The Ice Man, in the works as well. This project, titled The Iceman, comes from Nu Image, and already has its star: Michael Shannon, who can currently be seen on HBO’s Boardwalk Empire, and has also been seen in movies like Bug and Revolutionary Road, which nabbed him an Academy Award nomination. Benicio Del Toro is also set for a role in the film, and James Franco is a possibility. This film will be directed by Ariel Vromen, who has previously helmed Rx and Danika.

The Rourke project is aiming to begin production come spring, while this second project is aiming at a start date some time next summer.

Last August, we covered a story about the Iceman, Richard Kuklinski, one of the world’s most infamous serial killers and mafia hitmen (Read: Best News Ever: Ice Man Richard Kuklinski Movie Delayed Due To Channing Tatum Casting Possibility). At the time, it was revealed that Philip Carlo, who authored the book The Ice Man: Confessions of a Mafia Contract Killer, was pulling out of his movie deal to adapt the book with producer Lorenzo di Bonaventura because Bonaventura wanted to cast Channing Tatum to play Kuklinski.

This would have been one of the worst casting choices in the history of cinema, and everyone including Carlo seemed to know it, which led to the halt and retreat from further progress. At the time, Carlo made it known that his preference was for Mickey Rourke to take on the role, and though many of you felt actors like James Gandolfini or Tom Wilkinson would be best, it’s now being reported that Rourke is indeed attached to star.

In this world, there is nothing more refreshing than someone saying “no” to the misguided and highly-confused Hollywood machine.

The New York Post is reporting that Phil Carlo, author of The Ice Man: Confessions of a Mafia Contract Killer, has pulled out of his deal with producer Lorenzo di Bonaventura to turn his book into a movie. The reason: di Bonaventura wanted to cast questionable budding superstar Channing Tatum (G.I. Joe, Step Up) in the lead role of the Ice Man, Richard Kuklinski. If you’re not familiar with Kuklinski, then this doesn’t really affect you either way. Believe me when I say that would have been one of the most disgusting casting choices in the history of cinema.

In case you’re not familiar with him, Richard Kuklinski was a man who claimed to have killed 100 to 200 people, and this being true would not surprise me in the least. At first, he was just a purely cold-blooded killer who told stories of murdering people with no remorse for every-day things that simply piss you and I off, like road rage. When the mafia caught wind of his…ability…to kill without a second thought, they went out and hired him as their hitman. He obtained his nickname, Ice Man, due to the fact that he threw the bodies of his victims in a giant freezer to make determining the time of death nearly impossible. He died in prison in 2006.

Click over to see a video featuring one of history’s most dangerous men ever to exist.