Ron Howard Directing Ludlum’s Parsifal Mosaic
Universal Pictures has attached Ron Howard to direct “The Parsifal Mosaic,” an espionage thriller written by author Robert Ludlum. Ludlum is quite well known for The Bourne series of books which feature the popular spy Jason Bourne.
The 1982 book focuses on jockeying between U.S. and Soviet intelligence agents, with American spies Michael Havelock and Jenna Karas, who are partners as well as lovers, at the center of a series of crosses and double crosses. A flashback to a Nazi attack during World War II serves as a linchpin of the story.
The action in Mosaic jumps between countries such as Italy, Greece and the former Czechoslovakia. The novel is regarded as perhaps the most Cold War-centric of Ludlum’s work.
Tom Cruise To Join Washington In Movie Based On Ludlum’s Matarese Circle
As we know, Denzel Washington will star in action thriller project “The Matarese Circle” a film adaptation of Robert Ludlum’s novel. Now, Tom Cruise is in talks to join Denzel Washington, actually, he is getting ready to partner with Denzel Washington in the David Cronenberg-directed adaptation of Ludlum’s 1979 book for MGM.
Unlike in the action drama “American Gangster“, Washington would be portraying the good guy in this film. “Matarese” centers on the collaboration of two rival secret agents, an American Bradley Scofield, CIA, and a Russian KGB agent Vasili Taleniekov. The two are forced to work together after spending two decades trying to kill each other who in order to fight a mysterious murderer group called the Matarese.
The script will be written by Michael Brandt and Derek Haas (”Wanted“), who both are said to be attached to the project.
Like many books by the late Ludlum, “The Matarese Circle” is set during the Cold War. Insiders said the Cold War tensions will be dropped and the storyline contemporized.
Ludlum wrote a second book “The Matarese Countdown,” which MGM also acquired the follow-up novel, so, Tom Cruise and Denzel Washington are teaming up for what could possibly turn into a new franchise.
Lorenzo di Bonaventura and Nick Wechsler will produce with Jeffrey Weiner and Ben Smith’s newly formed Captivate Entertainment. Henry Morrison is exec producer. While Cruise is a co-owner of Lion sibling studio United Artists, “The Matarese Circle” will strictly be an MGM picture.
The studio is hoping to go into production this year, shooting for a 2010 release.
“Bourne 4″ Moving Ahead With Nolfi Penning
Universal is moving forward with a fourth Jason Bourne movie, tentatively titled “Bourne 4“. The Bourne Ultimatum writer George Nolfi has been hired to pen the sequel. Nolfi’s other credits include The Sentinel, Ocean’s Twelve and Timeline.
Director Paul Greengrass and star Matt Damon are attached to the new film. The film will be produced by Frank Marshall and executive produced by Jeffrey Weiner and Henry Morrison.
This Bourne movie may still however, end up being significantly different from the others. The first three movies were loosely based on a series of books by Robert Ludlum. There is a fourth book, but it wasn’t written by Ludlum and back in June, producer Frank Marshall indicated they’d ignore the fourth book and go their own direction with the series. At the time, he hinted that Bourne may be skipping out on his European locales for a trip to South America, and if previous talk turns out to be true, they should start shooting it this coming summer.
The first three films have brought in a combined total of $524 million at the domestic box-office.
MGM Buys Ludlum’s ‘The Matarese Circle’ for $3 million
With an eye on the success of the Bourne spy franchise, MGM has snapped up movie rights to another Robert Ludlum thriller.
In its first major material deal made since Mary Parent took over as head of MGM’s worldwide motion picture group, the studio ponied up for “The Matarese Circle,” a 1979 book by Robert Ludlum.
The book sold for $3 million, with another seven-figures to be paid to screenwriters Michael Brandt and Derek Haas according to Variety.
Ryan Kavanaugh’s Relativity Media will co-finance the film, and Denzel Washington is attached to star.
Like many books by the late Ludlum, “The Matarese Circle” is set during the Cold War. The book pairs rival spies, one from the CIA and the other from the KGB, who bury the hatchet for the moment because only they possess the smarts and killing abilities to go up against an international circle of criminals called the Matarese. Insiders said the Cold War tensions will be dropped and the storyline contemporized.
Ludlum wrote a second book — “The Matarese Countdown” — that was not part of the deal. More than likely, a screen sequel would come from an original story.
While MGM’s $3 million buy is likely the largest sum paid for a book so far this year, it’s not extreme for Ludlum. Universal recently reengaged Paul Greengrass and Matt Damon to return for a fourth Jason Bourne thriller, and in 2005, Paramount paid $4 million for Ludlum’s “The Chancellor Manuscript,” a thriller that sold with a Leonardo DiCaprio attachment.
