John August writes for Tim Burton & Sam Mendes!

John August sounding extremely dejected a few weeks ago when he revealed his script for SHAZAM had basically been dumped by Warner Bros, has just seen his luck change. The Hollywood Reporter say he the BIG FISH and CHARLIE AND THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY scribe is to work with Tim Burton again, penning the FRANKENWEENIE prequel based on Tim Burton's 1984 comedic horror short. The movie will be stop-motion animated and made in 3-D, shot in black and white with a studio releases of 2011. Many of Burton's collaborators and artists who worked with him on CORPSE BRIDE have re-joined him for this gig. The trade also mentions that Sam Mendes has chosen August to scribe PREACHER, the DC/Vertigo series of the 1990's which tells the story of a down-and-out Texas preacher, given immense powers, who teams up with a former girlfriend and a hard-drinking Irish vampire and sets out on a journey across America to find God -- who apparently had abandoned his duties in heaven -- and hold him accountable for his negligence. The movie is expected to be next for Mendes, who will be hoping his REVOLUTIONARY ROAD finds Oscar recognition today.