by: S. Scott Stanikmas – Senior Staff Writer

The 2011 film The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo, an adaptation of Swedish author Steig Larsson’s first book in the Millennium Series and remake of the Swedish film, was a bit of an underwhelming performer at the box office. Which is why it’s a bit surprising that a sequel is still moving forward. But what’s even more surprising is the direction the sequel is taking.

First off, the big three components of the first film aren’t returning. Rooney Mara, Daniel Craig and director David Fincher will not be making the return to series. Instead, The Wrap is reporting that new Hollywood ‘It Girl’ Alicia Vikander is up for the Lisbeth Salander role that Mara once occupied.

But that’s not the even the weirdest part. The next book to be adapted won’t be The Girl Who Played with Fire, the second book in the series. The rumor is that the adaptation will be for the fourth book, The Girl in the Spider’s Web, which wasn’t even written by Larsson but by David Lagercrantz (who has been tapped to continue the series with at least two more books in the next couple years).

Steven Knight, the screenwriter behind films like Eastern Promises, Locke and the recent Burnt, has been tapped to do the big screen adaptation.

The new film is being looked at as a way to reboot the series, but whether it will be a full on reboot or just a recasting has yet to be discovered.

Sony hasn’t set any kind of start date yet, but with how badly the first film did I’m kind of hoping they just let this one dry up on the vine. Besides, the original trilogy of films will be a hard act to top if that’s what the studio is shooting for.