Smith to write not direct 'The Green Hornet'

LOS ANGELES, June 14 (UPI) -- Kevin Smith, the U.S. director of "Jersey Girl" who had been named to direct "The Green Hornet" won't be in the director's chair after all.

Smith says he will probably write and but not direct the cult comic book story for the big screen, according to MSNBC's The Scoop.

The Scoop also reported that Smith is working on what he has described as a "small project" that many assumed would star his longtime friend Ben Affleck with whom he collaborated on the 1997 "Chasing Amy," as well as "Jersey Girl."

Affleck "romanticizes that period in his life," Smith told the Illawarra Mercury of Australia.

"For him, it was the last moment before the apple cart took off. He became 'Ben Affleck, the Movie Star' after that."

Another Affleck collaboration with Smith seems unlikely after Affleck failed to appear at the London premiere of "Jersey Girl" because he said he had bronchitis and Smith poked fun at him.