Frank Darabont's long-gestating adaptation of Ray Bradbury's Fahrenheit 451 is in need of a new leading man.

Darabont tells MTV Movies that Tom Hanks, who had been attached to the lead role for roughly a year, has exited the project:

Mr. Hanks sadly and regretfully had to back out. I was really looking forward to working with him again, but his other commitments just precluded it. He had to take a step back.

But even without Hanks on board, Darabont's enthusiasm for Bradbury's tale of an America in which books (and all critical thought, really) have been banned remains undimmed. He's still going full steam ahead:

I see this movie so clearly in my head. It's flowing in my veins...It's one of the greatest books ever written. It's got all that great political stuff underneath the skin of it but really what it is is a great galloping tale.

So who's Darabont looking at to step in for Hanks? He doesn't name any names, but he does tell MTV that he's looking at "a short list of people."

Source: MTV Movies