If you are, by any chance, a longtime fan of Way of The Gun, the Christopher McQuarrie-directed crime thriller starring Benicio Del Toro and Ryan Philippe, than you've been probably waiting to hear what McQuarrie would direct next. And if you're hoping for The Wolverine (which he also scripted), this is even better because Deadline reveals Tom Cruise has entered talks to star as Jack Reacher in One Shot, an adaptation of the Lee Child's novel that McQuarrie is set to helm.
One Shot is the ninth book in the series featuring former Army MP turned drifter-investigator Jack Reacher, and it's about Reacher's fight to solve a mass sniper shooting. The Usual Suspects' writer Quarrie has scripted as well.
Jack Reacher is Triple X, Indiana Jones and Don Quixote all rolled into one. The story starts with a sniper firing off six shots and murdering five workers in an office building in Indiana and Reacher comes in to investigate. However, the film will most probably shoot in Pittsburgh.
Should Cruise sign on, he will make the movie before production on Joseph Kosinski's Oblivion begins in January. The One Shot project would be the second time that McQuarrie and Cruise have collaborated since the former scripting Valkyrie in which the latter starred.
There was one thing I thought was a little out of line. Jack Reacher fans may complain about the odd job casting here since Cruise is a veteran action star and despite he can still get physical when he needs to, he's only 5'7″, and in the novels Reacher is described as, 6'5,” and around 250 pounds.
But, Child wasn't locked into a colossal actor, and it was more about establishing a presence of a fear-inspiring force. Child said when he threw his full support behind the move:
Reacher's size in the books is a metaphor for an unstoppable force, which Cruise portrays in his own way.”
As for Cruise, he'll also co produce One Shot and besides this negotiation he's assembled an awesome team for Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol and is currently developing Adam Shankman's musical version Rock of Ages.
Stay tuned.
One Shot, Book Cover
