After getting bit by the blockbuster bug with Thor, director Kenneth Branagh is now in talks to take over another summer actioner for Paramount. Vulture is reporting that he has jumped aboard the Jack Ryan reboot, which is still untitled but has Chris Pine attached to star as our lead.
The project hit a snag last week when frequent Lost director Jack Bender dropped out of the film to focus on TV duties. Now we hear that there was more struggle than just that, as Pine is interested in creating more of a character-focused spy film and producer Lorenzo di Bonaventura is intent on making a big action film, while the studio wants to make it a strict thriller. The update to the Tom Clancy franchise has had script contributions from many screenwriters, including David Koepp, Steve Zaillian, Hossein Amini, Anthony Peckham, and Adam Cozad, which accounts for this push and pull in many directions.
This new film will focus on the beginning of Jack Ryan, regardless of the style, and it’ll be set in today’s world without tying to the Cold War themes of the other films. As for Pine, he has endless charisma, a fact epitomized last month by making a McG film barely watchable. I’d love to see him paired with Branagh, even though the director used one too many canted angles on Thor. That superhero film far exceeded most people’s expectations, so let’s hope he can continue the magic with this reboot.
The plan is to begin production this September, well after Pine completes his Star Trek 2 duties.