Chris Pine is in negotiations to star in a reboot of “The Saint,” based on the 1920s book series written by Leslie Charteris. The movie follows Simon Templar, better known as The Saint, a Robin Hood-esque criminal and thief for hire who goes on a globetrotting adventure.
Dexter Fletcher (“Rocketman”) will direct the film and Seth Grahame-Smith wrote the script. Lorenzo Di Bonaventura (“Transformers,” “G.I. Joe) is producing along with Brad Krevoy and Mark Vahradian. Robert Evans, who served as a producer on the original film and died in 2019, also helped produce.
Paramount and Pine have had strong ties for many years. Their relationship goes back to 2009 when the studio hired him to play Captain Kirk in the latest “Star Trek” franchise, launching his career as a leading man in the process. While the fourth “Star Trek” film is still being developed, the studio saw “The Saint” as the perfect role for Pine as they wait for that script to be finished.
With the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic shutting down almost all film and TV projects, it’s unknown when “The Saint” would go into production. It seems likely that this would mark Fletcher’s next film with Pine’s commitment. The director had been developing several films since finishing “Rocketman,” including the Dracula pic “Renfield” at Universal, but this seems to be in first position now that Pine is attached.
“The Saint” is based on a 1920s book series of the same name by Leslie Charteris and was turned into a film in 1997 starring Val Kilmer. In addition to the Kilmer film, it inspired a 1960s TV show starring Roger Moore. Paramount sees the reboot as the potential start for a long-running movie series.
Pine is coming off the TNT limited series “We Are the Night,” which earned him strong reviews from the critics. He can be seen next reprising his role of Steve Trevor in “Wonder Woman: 1984,” which bows on Aug. 14. He most recently wrapped production on “Violence of Action” by Tarik Saleh.
