It’s been a minute since we’ve seen Matt Damon inhabit his other self, Jason Bourne, in 2007. He and director Paul Greengrass made two solid films (that were successful across the board) and apparently discussed making a fourth entry for a while, but the timing was never quite there. Cue Edward Snowden. Here’s what Damon told BuzzFeed News:
“We always looked at those movies as really about the Bush presidency, and so we kind of had to wait for the world to change.”
The Bourne Legacy, the fourth entry in the franchise and the black sheep of the group, was a misfire by talented writer/director Tony Gilroy (Michael Clayton, State of Play) and has all but been unacknowledged by everyone involved. It was a shiny looking film, but one that not even Jeremy Renner could save. Bottom line, Matt Damon is Jason Bourne and that is who we want to see onscreen.
Damon will also be joined by a fresh new cast that will reportedly include Tommy Lee Jones and Alicia Vikander – while Julia Stiles will reappear in the mix reprising her old The Bourne Identity role as Nicky Parsons. While talking to BuzzFeed News, Damon seemed beyond eager to get the project underway:
“Without giving too much of it away, it’s Bourne through an austerity-riddled Europe and in a post-Snowden world. It seems like enough has changed, you know? There are all these kinds of arguments about spying and civil liberties and the nature of democracy.”
The Bourne franchise is a sleeper franchise that always delivers (omitting Legacy – we’ll just act like that never happened). And with Greengrass back in the director’s seat and a Snowden-esque plot line, we are bound for something glorious.
(Via BuzzFeed)
