Source: Everyone's favorite Hollywood trade, Variety.

　　What we heard: Last October, a tremor went through the game industry when Variety reported that Epic Games might be acquired. However, instead of a big corporate monolith like Microsoft, the suitor in question was Legendary Pictures. Besides being flush with cash from such blockbuster films as 300 and The Dark Knight, the privately held production company is also bankrolling the big-screen adaptation of Epic's Gears of War. The movie, slated for release next year, is being directed by Len Wiseman (Live Free or Die Hard, Underworld) and executive-produced by Epic design director Cliff Bleszinski.

　　Legendary's reported advances toward Epic came shortly after its CEO, Thomas Tull, quit the board of the now-defunct upstart publisher Brash Entertainment. However, the experience hasn't put the company off the game trail, with Variety today reporting that it is in negotiations to sign Kathy Vrabeck to lead a new games division.

　　If Legendary does hire Vrabeck, it will be a sign that Tull is deadly serious about getting into games. Most recently, she served a brief stint as president of Electronic Arts' EA Casual label--which she mysteriously left last year shortly before it was quietly folded into the Sims Studio. Prior to that, she served as president of Activision Publishing from 2003-2005 after serving as executive vice president of worldwide publishing and global brand management at the publisher.

　　The official story: Attempts to get a comment from Legendary Pictures had been unsuccessful as of press time.

　　Bogus or not bogus?: Given Variety's track record, it's probably not bogus that Vrabeck and Legendary are talking. With the experienced former currently jobless and the latter's coffers overflowing with Dark Knight lucre, it seems likely the pair would be receptive to each other's advances. Time will tell if anything comes of the negotiations.