Dexter Fletcher to direct Paramount's 'The Saint' reboot
Paramount’s quest to resurrect Lesli Charteris British spy series just took a giant step forward
Dexter Fletcher - the filmmaker behind a pair of Taron Egerton biopics and Warner Bros. upcoming "Sherlock Holmes 3" - has signed a deal to direct The Saint according to Variety.
Paramount quietly secured the rights to Lesli Charteris's series back in 2016 in an effort to relaunch a franchise that has simmered in a vat of obscurity for the better part of SIX decades.
Chris Pratt was reportedly in “early talks” for the role made famous by Roger Moore’s 1960’s television series. But let’s be real. One can’t simply talk about The Saint without praising VAL KILMER’s peak performance as “Simon Magus” (along with his six aliases) in 1997's love story cloaked as a whacky - but dated - espionage thriller. Interestingly, Pratt's involvement is not mentioned in Variety’s story, which indicates both parties have likely moved on.
Fletcher will direct from a script written by Seth Grahame-Smith, producer on IT and IT Chapter Two, and writer of The Lego Batman Movie. Not quite the power house duo that screams must see cinema but a respectable duo no less. For now, I will gladly withhold any judgment until Paramount and Fletcher cast their Simon Templar *cough* DAN STEVENS. Sorry Taron Egerton.
Those who speak the language of 1997....Polaroid Millenium by Superior anyone?
