Michael B. Jordan is in talks with Paramount to play the Tom Clancy character John Clark for an upcoming film series, a person with knowledge of the deal told TheWrap.
Jordan would be the third actor to play the head of Rainbow Six. The character was previously played by Willem Dafoe in the 1994 adaptation of “Clear and Present Danger,” while Liev Schreiber played him in the 2002 film “The Sum of All Fears.” Both of those films also featured Clancy hero Jack Ryan, who is currently being played by John Krasinski in a TV series streaming on Amazon Prime.
Akiva Goldsman will produce the first film in the upcoming series, which is said to be an adaptation of Clark’s origin story novel, “Without Remorse.” Jordan will also produce with Josh Appelbaum and Corin Nemec.
While he has served as an ally to Ryan in most of Clancy’s novels, he became a breakout star among the novelist’s fans and earned his own standalone stories. In a Washington Post interview, Clancy described Clark as “Ryan’s dark side,” having shown a willingness to go to more violent lengths during his counter-terrorism missions.
Jordan, who earned critical acclaim earlier this year for his performance as Erik Killmonger in “Black Panther,” will return to the big screen as Adonis Creed in “Creed II.” He is also set to star in the legal drama “Just Mercy,” which is currently filming, and is attached to star in the true story drama “Wrong Answer,” which would reunite him with “Black Panther” and “Creed” director Ryan Coogler.
Jordan is repped by WME. The deal was first reported by Variety.