As a filmmaker Jim Sheridan is famous for depicting all different kinds of Irish people, from the struggling family of In America to the wrongfully imprisoned man in In the Name of the Father. Now he's taking a turn for the dark side, with plans to direct a movie about famed Irish-American mobster and FBI informant Whitey Bulger.

The script, according to Variety, will be adapted by Sheridan and Nye Heron from the book by Boston Globe reporters Dick Lehr and Gerard O'Neill, with the massive title Black Mass: The True Story of an Unholy Alliance Between the FBI and the Irish Mob.

Sheridan told Variety, ""This is a story of a corrupt system and about how an angry guy became the second most wanted man after Bin Laden."

Sounds awesome-- and timely, given that Michael Mann seems likely to bring mobsters back in style with Public Enemies next summer. Sheridan hasn't been heard from since the 50 Cent movie Get Rich or Die Tryin', so it'll be good to see him back to work, and back on familiar ground.