Paramount has signed “The Bourne Identity” filmmaker Doug Liman to direct the upcoming crime thriller “The Saint,” which will star Regé-Jean Page in a new imagining of the 1920s book series created by Leslie Charteris.
“The Saint” takes its name from the nickname of its protagonist, Simon Templar, a thief for-hire who travels around the world serving as a modern day Robin Hood, stealing from the rich and protecting the powerless.
Charteris’ novels were adapted into a hit British 1960s TV series that became Roger Moore’s biggest claim to fame before he became James Bond. Paramount also adapted the books into a 1997 film starring Val Kilmer.
Page will also serve as an executive producer on the film, with Lorenzo Di Bonaventura and Brad Kervoy. The late Paramount Pictures chief Robert Evans, who died in 2019, is also listed as a posthumous producer. “Black Adam” screenwriters Rory Haines and Sohrab Noshirvani are also attached to the project.
Liman’s recent work includes a reimagining of the Patrick Swayze action film “Road House” produced by MGM, as well as Apple Studios’ “The Instigators,” starring Liman’s “Bourne Identity” leading man Matt Damon.
Page, who broke out with his leading role in Netflix’s “Bridgerton,” recently worked with Paramount on the fantasy film “Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves,” playing the dashing and beloved hero Xenk Yendar.
Liman, Haines and Noshirvani are repped by CAA. The signing was first reported by Deadline.
