Last December we learned that director Bryan Singer signed on to helm the next X-Men movie, a prequel to the franchise called X-Men: First Class. Today we get to check out a few excerpts from a new interview that Singer gave to The Los Angeles Times about the new project. Here is a photo of Singer with producing partner Lauren Shuler Donner and some of their LA Times interview:

Through the years, comic-book films took audiences to all the predictable places, including the grim streets of Gotham City and the doomed spires of planet Krypton, but, a decade ago, a new type of comic-book film had the audacity to set its opening sequence in a truly unexpected place — the gates of Auschwitz, where Jewish families were bring marched through mud on their way to death and despair. From those first moments, “X-Men” set itself apart from the entire Hollywood history of comic-book adaptations and marked the beginning of this current era of fanboy cinema, which has dominated the box office and elevated San Diego’s Comic-Con International into something resembling a Cannes for capes. “The opening, it really was a declaration of intent,” producer Lauren Shuler Donner said of that sequence, which showed a terrified young boy exhibiting mutant powers as his family was separated by German guards. “It said to the audience this is a serious film, grounded in the realistic and the historic and somewhat dark. It was so smart. And it was all totally Bryan.” That would be Bryan Singer, the director of “X-Men” and its first sequel, who was sitting next to Shuler Donner in her office on a recent afternoon. The pair both had big smiles on their faces — they had been reunited by an invitation to reminisce about the legacy of the July 2000 release, which they were happy to do, but the conversation kept veering into giddy plans for the future. Singer is returning to the “X-Men” universe, it’s clear now, for a project called “X-Men: First Class”; it’s all just a matter of timing. “I had lunch with Hugh Jackman today,” Singer said, and Shuler Donner, after asking for an off-the-record moment, pressed the 44-year-old filmmaker for details. A few minutes later, with the recorder back on, Singer said he is mightily enthused to work again with Shuler Donner, who has produced two X-films without him, the Brett Ratner-directed “X-Men: The Last Stand” in 2006 and the Gavin Hood-directed “X-Men Origins: Wolverine” in 2009. “I genuinely like the people, and my personality meshes more with this universe than it does with other universes, I think; I see that now at this point,” Singer said, no doubt referring to his defection to the DC Comics universe to make the oddly lifeless 2006 movie “Superman Returns.” “I feel a connection to the X-Men characters and also the ensemble nature of the films. If you look at ‘Usual Suspects” or my last film, ‘Valkyrie,’ I feel especially comfortable with ensemble juggling. In the space between all the characters you can disguise a central thought that’s hidden in all the discourse. I missed that with the singular relationship story of Superman. And, well, it always gives you something to cut to…”

This fairly extensive interview with the LA Times continues behind the cut. Read on to get a taste of what Singer has in store for X-Men fans in the upcoming prequel film First Class — after the jump …

The 25th annual LA Marathon took place here in SoCal yesterday and for the first time ever was a completely sold out event. Additionally, the race route — titled City to the Sea — was an entirely new one that allowed participants to run from Dodger Stadium near downtown LA all the way to the ocean in Santa Monica, passing famed LA landmarks along the way. Among the runners in this year’s LA marathon was actor Shia LaBeouf … behold:

Shia LaBeouf, chef Gordon Ramsay and “Lord of the Rings” star Sean Astin will be among those making history in the Los Angeles Marathon on Sunday, March 21. The trio will be among the celebrities taking part in the run, which has sold out for the first time in its 25-year history. Twenty-five thousand marathon men and women will gather at Dodgers Stadium for the start on Sunday morning. Wrestler-turned-film star Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and actress Julia Louis-Dreyfuss will be among the stars cheering on the runners at checkpoints along the route.

Last year’s LA Marathon winner Wesley Korir was, once again, the winner this year with a time of 02:09:19 … but runs like this aren’t about who wins, they are about successful completion of the course no matter how long it takes. Shia here completed the run with a time of 04:37:18, coming in at #5839 (with a rating of 45.3% for his Sex Grade, MEN 18 TO 24). I don’t think I could ever handle a marathon run so my hat is off to Shia and anyone else who is able to successfully complete a marathon. Congrats!!

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In late January we learned that the original cast of MTV‘s Jersey Shore signed contracts to return for season 2 of the show and we also learned that the second season would be set in a new locale — NOT the Jersey Shore. TMZ reported late last night that the call came from MTV yesterday for the cast to report to Miami, FL to begin filming the second season of the show:

It’s 76 degrees in Miami today. Tonight there is a 60% chance of rain … but a 100% chance of Snooki. A TMZ spy on the production crew for “Jersey Shore” tells us the cast was given its marching orders for season two last night — they’re headed for Miami. And we have another source… at least one cast member told a TMZer he/she got the word over the weekend … and the word is Miami. Good luck, Miami. You’re gonna need it.

It’s happening, people … season 2 of Jersey Shore (a name that no longer makes any sense since the show will now be set in Miami, FL) is coming our way! While I’m cautiously hoping that the show will retain some of its entertainment value, I can’t help but fear it will be a contrived piece of crap that will just irritate me entirely. My sincerest apologies goes out to the city of Miami for what they are about to endure … as if there wasn’t enough Ed Hardy and hair gel for them to deal with before :(

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To prepare for his upcoming return to professional golf, Tiger Woods agreed to participate in two different interviews over the weekend on two different sports television networks to answer, one on one, some of the tougher questions that he has yet to answer personally (his first interviews since his public apology in February). It is my opinion that these interviews (which were limited to just 5 minutes each) were very well orchestrated and that he was fully prepared to answer every questions posed to him (tho, there were some questions that he would refuse to answer entirely) … in an effort to appear to the public (and his fans in particular) as if he is doing everything he can to get back in their good graces. It is also my opinion that the decision to participate in these two interviews is a stroke of genius by his PR team:

Love cheat Tiger Woods wants fans to clap him when he makes his golfing comeback next month, he said in his first TV interview since the sex scandal erupted. The shamed billionaire, who agreed answer any questions but restricted the chat to five minutes, also admitted he had been ‘living a lie’. The recording – just a month after his public apology for having at least 12 affairs – is seen as a calculated public relations drive to ease him back into the public eye as he prepares for the major tournament. And the married father of two told how he is nervous about returning to the U.S. Masters. Woods, 34, who has had two spells in sex rehab since November after crashing his car outside his Florida mansion, said: ‘I hurt so many people by my own reckless attitude and behaviour. I tried to stop and couldn’t stop. Talking to TV’s Golf Channel and ESPN, he revealed he was unsure about the reception he would get from fans when he plays at the U.S. Masters on April 8. ‘I’m a little nervous about that to be honest with you,’ he said. ‘It would be nice to hear a couple claps here and there. But also hope they clap for birdies, too.’ Woods also denied that his wife Elin Nordegren had attacked him on the night of the crash on November 27, 2009, after finding out about one of his affairs, adding: ‘Well, it’s all in the police report. Beyond that, everything’s between Elin and myself and that’s private.’ Asked why he lost control of the car, Woods replied: ‘As I said … that’s between Elin and myself.’ A string of women – including a porn actress and cocktail waitress – have come forward and claimed they had relationships with the golfer. He did not discuss details about his affairs but said that ‘just one is enough and obviously that wasn’t the case’. He also talked of the ‘brutal’ moments when he levelled with Elin. He said she was, ‘Hurt. Very hurt. Shocked. Angry. And, you know, she had every right to be and I’m as disappointed as everyone else in my own behaviour because I can’t believe I actually did that to the people I loved.’ Woods agreed to speak with a reporter from the U.S. sports channel ESPN sports and did not place any restrictions on questions that were asked. His only stipulation for the interview, which was carried out at the luxury Isleworth complex, near Orlando, Florida, was that it would last no longer than five minutes … Woods, who has been in therapy for nearly half of the past four months, said of his eagerly awaited return: ‘I’m excited to get back and play. I’m excited to get to see the guys again. ‘I really miss a lot of my friends out there. I miss competing. But still, I still have a lot more treatment to do, and just because I’m playing, doesn’t mean I’m gonna stop going to treatment.’ The sportsman – famed for his privacy – conceded the world knew him ‘a lot better now’. ‘I was living a life of a lie,’ he said. ‘I really was. And I was doing a lot of things, like I said, that hurt a lot of people. And stripping away denial and rationalisation you start coming to the truth of who you really are and that can be very ugly. But then again, when you face it and you start conquering it and you start living up to it. The strength that I feel now, I’ve never felt that type of strength.’ Woods’s last tournament appearance was on November 15, 2009 – when he won the Australian Masters.

While I personally was not impressed with either of these interviews, I absolutely think they will work to his advantage with his target audience … golf fans. He continues to do everything right … he’s already publicly apologized, he’s got his wife back on board with him and now he is giving the appearance of approachability to the press. After he makes his official return to professional golf next month, his plan will be nearly complete. At this point, he’s biting the bullet … doing what he has to do to make his Cheating Scandal a thing of the past. After the jump, check out video of Tiger‘s interviews with ESPN and The Golf Channel …