After minor details on plot and shooting were revealed yesterday, the anticipation increased slightly for Steven Soderbergh‘s upcoming adaptation of the classic 1960s TV series, The Man From U.N.C.L.E., which we’ve previously known almost nothing about. George Clooney (who collaborated with Soderbergh on Out of Sight, the Ocean‘s trilogy, and The Good German) was set to star in the leading role. However, Deadline is reporting that, in a surprising turn of events, Clooney has dropped out of the film for undisclosed reasons.

One can only speculate, but it presumably has to do with Clooney‘s busy schedule, which conflicts with the fact that Warner Bros. is pushing for shooting to commence in the spring, which perhaps just isn’t possible for him at the moment. Still, it is quite strange, considering the director and star’s good relationship — and when you think about how much Clooney starring would help the film on a financial level, slightly pushing back the shooting wouldn’t be too harmful. Especially since Soderbergh has a lot on his hands at the moment, what with Magic Mike set to shoot soon and him being the second unit director on The Hunger Games.

In other, more positive Clooney news, a new poster has been released for the actor’s upcoming film ,The Ides Of March, which he’s directed and is the star of. Check out the poster below, courtesy of TheDailyBlam:

The film also stars Ryan Gosling, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Paul Giamatti, Marisa Tomei, Jeffrey Wright, and Evan Rachel Wood. It’ll see a wide release on October 7th, with a debut at TIFF happening next month.

Are you disappointed that Clooney is out of The Man From U.N.C.L.E.? What do you think of the new poster for The Ides Of March?