Black spot for Jemaine Clement

Flight of the Conchords' heart-throb Jemaine Clement is in line for Hollywood stardom.

US entertainment sites are reporting Clement is being considered for a lead role in the long-awaited Men in Black III blockbuster.

Clement and English funnyman Sacha Baron Cohen – star of Ali G, Borat and Bruno – are said to be the two favourites for the role, a character named Yaz.

Hollywood A-lister Will Smith will again lead the cast for the latest movie in the smash hit series.

But fellow big-screen idol Tommy Lee Jones, who starred with Smith in the first two films, is yet to be confirmed.

Clement has been linked to the Columbia Pictures production after earning rave reviews for his role as Ronald Chevalier – a shady professor in American cult comedy hit Gentlemen Broncos.

The quirky Kiwi has also lent his voice to the highly anticipated animated flick Despicable Me which features voice-overs from Steve Carell, Julie Andrews and Russell Brand. And he won critical acclaim for his zany role in offbeat romantic comedy Eagle vs Shark.

It is understood Men in Black III will see Agent J – Smith – and the character Jones has played to date, Agent K, going back in time to deal with a new alien threat.

Columbia Pictures is yet to confirm when production will start.

News of Clement's possible Men in Black III role comes three months after he and fellow Flight of the Conchords' star Bret McKenzie confirmed the duo would not film a third series of their international hit TV show.

In a joint statement, the pair said: "We've noticed the less we say about the future of the show, the more people want to talk about it, so in an effort to reverse this trend we are today announcing that we won't be returning for a third season.

"We're very proud of the two seasons we made and we like the way the show ended.

"We'd like to thank everyone who helped make the show and also everyone who watched it. While the characters Bret and Jemaine will no longer be around, the real Bret and Jemaine will continue to exist."

Produced by HBO, the first two seasons of the Flight of the Conchords earned nine Emmy Award nominations.

While the decision to shelve the Flight of the Conchords' TV show gutted fans worldwide, Monty Python star Eric Idle said on Friday that it was the right one to make.

"That was rather brave of them but they were right," Idle said.

"I thought they had done everything; they hadn't done everything musically, but they had done everything in their sitcom world."

Meanwhile, the Flight of the Conchords' upcoming tour of the UK has been hit by controversy after scalpers secured thousands of tickets for what is expected to be their farewell tour.

Tickets with a face value of $90 are now being offered for up to $1500. Official ticket sales for some of the Conchords' live gigs – including at Wembley Arena, the Apollo in Manchester and the Hammersmith Apollo in London – were snapped up within one minute.

Clement said on confirmation of the tour last week: "Flight of the Conchords has had a great relationship with the UK in the past.

"In some ways you could say we got our start there, and we were always over at the UK's house. But then one night, some heated words were said and Flight of the Conchords left in a huff. We haven't been back since.

"That was five years ago. Now, we're coming back to say we're sorry. We'll also be visiting our old friend Ireland, an acquaintance that we had an uneasy first date with called The Netherlands and some countries we have never met called Norway and Sweden."

- © Fairfax NZ News