Variety is reporting that none other than Rocketman helmer Dexter Fletcher is set to direct a redo of The Saint for Paramount Pictures. The trade says that the new film, which is written by Seth Grahame-Smith, is based on the original 1920s novel series written by Leslie Charteris, a property that was turned into a popular television series and then a later movie in the late 1990s with Val Kilmer.
Paramount
The property revolves around Simon Templar, a British spy who ‘helps those whom conventional agencies are powerless or unwilling to protect, often using methods that skirt the law.’
The original series starring Roger Moore as Templar ran for six seasons from 1962 to 1969. Ian Ogilvy played the character in a revival between 1978 and 1979. Val Kilmer played Templay in the 1990s movie of the same name.
Paramount, according to the trade, has big hopes for the new movie, with a potential series in the works should the first one be successful.
Dexter Fletcher soared high in 2019 with the Elton John biopic Rocketman which has so far grossed a whopping $190 million-plus around the world.
More as it comes in.
