We were all shocked last week to discover that Frank Darabont had parted ways with Universal and would no longer direct The Huntsman. It was mentioned at the time however that the studio were hoping to find a replacement this week, and they’ve wasted no time as Cedric Nicolas-Troyan is in talks to replace Darabont!

The VFX specialist worked on Snow White and the Huntsman, earning an Oscar nomination for his work. He was also Second Unit Director on Maleficent, and has been attached to direct Bethlehem for some time too.

The spinoff is actually being developed as a prequel to the original, with Chris Hemsworth (Avengers: Age of Ultron) and Charlize Theron (Mad Max: Fury Road) both set to reprise their roles from the previous movie.

Edge of Tomorrow star Emily Blunt is also in talks to join the cast, and various sites are reporting that Nicolas-Troyan is the favourite to land the job after emerging as a frontrunner at Universal due to how familiar he is with the world of Snow White and the Huntsman. Joe Roth and Palak Patel are producing.

Going from Darabont to Nicolas-Troyan is quite a difference, but The Huntsman should show off his qualities as a filmmaker. He’s also attached to the Highlander reboot. What Darabont will do next remains to be seen!