Hermione and the Ark?: Emma Watson Ready to Board Darren Aronofsky's 'Noah'

After finally becoming an A-list director with The Wrestler and The Black Swan, Darren Aronofsky has begun work on his next project: Noah. The director has already cast Russell Crowe as the man responsible for gathering two animals of every kind. Deadline Hollywood is reporting that Aronofsky is now looking to add Emma Watson to his Noah story.

This could be a huge move for Watson, who's best known for her role as Hermione Granger in the Harry Potter films. Aronofsky makes films for adults and he makes film that get nominated for Oscars. Look at this last two films. The Wrestler resurrected Mickey Rourke's career and earned the actor an Oscar nomination. Black Swan announced that Natalie Portman had finally put those Star Wars days behind her and won the actress an Oscar.

Watson couldn't do much better than signing on for an Aronofsky film, especially if she wants to prove that she's a serious actress now. On face value, a movie about Noah and his ark would appear to be a popcorn movie, something you'd expect Roland Emmerich to direct. With Aronofsky directing though, it's a different story. When Noah comes out in 2014, are we going to be talking about Watson as an Oscar contender?