Variety reports that Paramount and director Dexter Fletcher (Rocketman) have found their lead actor to star as Simon Templar in The Saint. According to the trade, Chris Pine (Wonder Woman 1984) will star as Templar in the reboot.
Pine’s Simon Templar, better known as The Saint, is described as “a Robin Hood-esque criminal and thief for hire who goes on a globetrotting adventure.” The character was created by author Leslie Charteris in 1928 and launched a long-running series of novels that were popular for well over half a century.
The Saint has been adapted many times through radio plays and films, but he was most famously portrayed on the small screen by the late James Bond actor Roger Moore in the classic 1960s TV series and Top Gun‘s Val Kilmer in the 1997 feature film adaptation.
Producers Lorenzo di Bonaventura, Brad Krevoy and Robert Evansherlos have been trying to get The Saint off the ground for a number of years now, with Guardians of the Galaxy’s Chris Pratt previously linked to the role of Simon Templar. With a director now on board, hopefully the reboot will soon become a reality.
Pine has had a long partnership with Paramount through the rebooted Star Trek film franchise as a young Captain Kirk and their Tom Clancy film reboot Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit. A fourth Star Trek is currently in development with Noah Hawley (Lucy in the Sky) directing and Paramount thought Pine would be a good fit for The Saint while Star Trek is developed and hopes to start a Saint franchise with Pine in the lead.
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