"Horton Hears a Who!" director Jimmy Hayward will make his live-action directing debut with "Jonah Hex," the Warner Bros. adaptation of the DC Comics comic book. Mark Neveldine and Brian Taylor ("Crank") had originally signed to direct but left in November due to creative differences.

The Hollywood Reporter reports that Josh Brolin is still attached to the project and the studio hopes to begin production in March or April. The character of Jonah Hex tells of a gunslinger and bounty hunter who is partially disfigured and wears a Confederate uniform. His adventures "always ended in blood" and in some stories in the comic book, there are supernatural elements. The studio will keep Neveldine and Taylor's script but Hayward will likely make changes as well.