Too much at stake for Phoenix to do a Vampire movie?

You’ll recall a few weeks ago news hit that Joaquin Phoenix was being courted to star as the title character’s mentor in “Abraham Lincoln : Vampire Hunter”, Timur Bekmambetov’s twisted tale of a pre-Presidential Lincoln (Ben Walker) as he slaughters a populace of undead. Well seems Phoenix – for whatever reason – didn’t get the part, so Fox have Dominic Cooper (“Tamara Drewe”, “Mamma Mia”) now negotiating for the role, says Variety.

Cooper, who was the talk of Sundance with his dual role of Uday Hussein and the man forced to be his body double in “The Devil’s Double”, would play the immortal Yoda-type who teaches Lincoln how to kill vampires.

In addition, Anthony Mackie, soon to be seen in “The Adjustment Bureau”, has been enlisted to play Lincoln’s best friend.

Tim Burton is producing the film, based on a graphic novel by Seth Grahame-Smith.