Jesse Eisenberg and Paul Dano filming in Boston

Revenge of the nerds hitting Boston? Jesse Eisenberg and Paul Dano, two up-and-coming actors known for their geek-chic charm, have signed on to play ... no surprise here ... whiz kids on a mission in "The Social Network" and the formerly titled "Wichita" films respectively.

Eisenberg, in Boston over the weekend with "Cheers" alum Woody Harrelson to promote his new flick "Zombieland," will make a return trip to the Hub next month to star as Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg.

"The Social Network," slotted to begin filming in Harvard Square on Oct. 19, also stars Justin Timberlake and follows Eisenberg's character getting dumped at a Boston-area bar and ends with him adding his former girlfriend to his friend list on his multibillion-dollar social networking site. The story is based on Mezrich's latest book, "The Accidental Billionaires: The Founding of Facebook. A Tale of Sex, Money, Genius and Betrayal."

Moss Lynch, a Loaded Gun Boston reader and Suffolk University student, snapped a photo alongside Eisenberg after the Saturday, Sept. 26 screening of "Zombieland" at the AMC Boston Common movie theater.

Meanwhile, Paul Dano, known as the brooding brother in "Little Miss Sunshine" and star of Spike Jonze's upcoming "Where the Wild Things Are," has signed on to play a "charming but mysterious scientist" in the soon-to-be-renamed "Wichita" movie with Tom Cruise and Cameron Diaz.

The untitled "Wichita" project follows Cruise as a secret agent who pops in and out of the life of a single woman played by Diaz.

Apparently, Dano's character is thrust into the action when his invention becomes the focus of Cruise and Diaz's chase.

Speaking of "Wichita," crews are filming at the Boston Fire Museum, located at 344 Congress St in South Boston's Fort Point Channel neighborhood on Monday, Sept. 28.

Click here for the latest on "Untitled Wichita Project" and here for "The Social Network."

--Jesse Eisenberg photo courtesy Moss Lynch