Eminem's 'Southpaw' may land director Antoine Fuqua

Director Antoine Fuqua is in talks to direct an upcoming boxing drama & Eminem vehicle entitled "Southpaw." Fuqua, who hasn't done anything significant since 2001's "Training Day", has stepped away from a Tupac Shakur biopic that he has been working on for several months in order to pursue this new project.

According to the Los Angeles Times, "Southpaw" was written by "Sons of Anarchy" creator Kurt Sutter and focuses on the plight of a left-handed boxer whose life is beset by tragedy during his quest for the title. The film is on track to go into production later this year and will be Eminem's first role since 2002's "8 Mile."

Look at Eminem in Apatow's 'Funny People'

Judd Apatow has lined up quite the cast for his upcoming comedy "Funny People," and he even recruited some stars for some brief appearances.

As you can see in the photo (posted by MTV) above, rapper Eminem is also part of the cast. It's still unknown what role he will play exactly, but this shows he will have an encounter with the film's lead character George Simmons (Adam Sandler).

Simmons is a standup comedian whose life changes after he has a near-death experience. The cast also includes Seth Rogen, Jonah Hill, Leslie Mann, Eric Bana and Jason Schwartzman, among others.

"Funny People" looks really funny, and it will hit theaters July 31, 2009. Check out the trailer right here. Eminem's last big-screen appearance was in "8 Mile."