Spielberg, Jackson to direct Tintin series

HOLLYWOOD, May 16 (UPI) -- Hollywood powerhouses Steven Spielberg and Peter Jackson have teamed up to produce and direct three features based on the Belgian comic strip hero Tintin.

The filmmakers will each direct at least one of the three back-to-back movies, but DreamWorks would not say who might direct the third, Variety reported Tuesday. Kathleen Kennedy, Spielberg and Jackson will act as producers on all three movies based on the "The Adventures of Tintin" created by Georges Remi under the pen name Herge.

Official word of the deal comes just weeks after Jackson signed a contract with DreamWorks to direct "Lovely Bones," based on Alice Sebold's novel about a 14-year-old girl who watches over her family and attacker from heaven after she is raped and killed.