There were rumours a few months back that City of God's Fernando Mereilles would direct a new movie about Jack Ryan with Ryan Gosling in the starring role. But now it's been officially reported that Sam Raimi will be the man to bring Tom Clancy's CIA analyst – who has so far appeared in The Hunt for Red October, Patriot Games, Clear and Present Danger and The Sum of All Fears – back to cinemas. There's no mention of Gosling in the story.
Raimi is set to direct a series of films – not just one – about the character, to be produced by Lorenzo Di Bonaventura and Josh Donen. The plan is to follow a younger version of Ryan at the beginning of his career. However, Paramount, the studio behind the project, is considering setting the film in the present, with Ryan facing a global threat. Wethinks they've been closely monitoring the renewed success of the Bond franchise.
Clancy is currently working on a new Ryan adventure, but it's not decided that it will become the basis of the first movie because Paramount hasn't seen it. A screenwriter will soon be hired to write the script with the intention of the first movie being ready for 2010.
So, what do you think? Is Ryan a character in need of resurrection?