True Story: CAA Signs Up Weekly World News

It used to be that you couldn't believe anything that came out of the offices of the erstwhile, cult-classic supermarket tabloid Weekly World News. But according to reports, the 30-year-old institution has acquired representation at CAA, which is expected to find film and television outlets for the publication's iconic parade of freaks. First up: Bat Boy, who already earned his own musical years after being "found in a cave" and is reportedly now being groomed for multimedia stardom.

DreamWorks is said to be particularly interested a TV series featuring Bat Boy and the rest WWN stable, which also includes Rush LImbaugh/Glenn Beck prototype Ed Anger as well as the world's richest hamster, the world's fattest cat, the half-man/half-alligator Man-agator, and numerous other cult heroes. The publisher of WWN, which became an online-only publication in 2007, apparently think he's sitting on the next Major Hollywood Brand™, telling THR of his pointy-eared flagship hero: "Zombies were big two years ago. Vampires are the rage this year. And we think 2010 will be Bat Boy's year. [...] He is in the genre of the trickster hero -- like Huckleberry Finn."

Right. Still, you have to hand it to the guy; who's to say he and CAA can't persuade someplace like Disney to laughingly toss a $1.99 copy of the magazine on top of its recent DreamWorks deal (not to mention its $4 billion order of Marvel groceries)? Ph.D Ape: Origins couldn't cost any more than something like Paranormal Activity, anyway, and look how that turned out.

· Weekly World News signs with CAA [THR]