Two years ago, Conclave director Edward Berger was in negotiations to helm a new Jason Bourne movie. The project ultimately didn’t come together, but Berger recently told Empire that he’d still love to tackle the project if it’s resurrected.
“That’s all in the stars,” he said. “I’d love to do it, but it depends on the script — whether we can find something for Matt Damon to play that he hasn’t before, and something that I don’t feel Paul Greengrass or the other directors have done.“
Berger is well aware that any follow-up to the iconic original trilogy would have a lot to live up to. “[Bourne] has such a legacy,” he said. “You don’t want to make a film where people say, ‘Ah, it’s not as good as the others.’ There are many hurdles.“
Based on Robert Ludlum’s novels, Jason Bourne was introduced to the big screen with The Bourne Identity in 2002. The film was a huge success and was followed by The Bourne Supremacy in 2004, The Bourne Ultimatum in 2007, The Bourne Legacy in 2012, and Jason Bourne in 2016.
Although the last Bourne movie did relatively well at the box office (taking in $415 million worldwide), the reaction was mixed. Even franchise star Matt Damon acknowledged the collective ‘meh’ from audiences. “This last one didn’t do as well as the one we did 10 years ago, so maybe people are done with the character,” Damon said. “I think everybody is leaving the door open, as we did at the end of this movie, in hopes that we can come up with an intriguing story for the next one.“
The franchise has called Universal Pictures home for over two decades, but the rights reverted to the Robert Ludlum estate earlier this year. After a heated bidding war, NBCUniversal regained the rights. “Since its debut in 2002, the iconic Bourne franchise has reshaped the spy genre with groundbreaking films that set new standards for cinematic action,” said Peter Cramer, President, Universal Pictures. “We’re energized to continue expanding the Bourne universe into the future with exciting new stories for global audiences.” It remains to be seen how Universal will bring the franchise back. Will it be rebooted? Will Matt Damon be involved? I suppose we’ll find out.
Would you like to see Edward Berger directing a new Jason Bourne movie?
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