Tony Gilroy's tumultuous history with the Jason Bourne franchise is, as he calls it, "well-documented." But after penning or co-scripting the first three Matt Damon-starring spy pics in the series — navigating a maelstrom of widely reported behind the scenes beefs, including Damon's snipe last year at Gilroy's Bourne Ultimatum script — the writer-director was lured back to this weekend's The Bourne Legacy by the opportunity to create a new secret agent (Jeremy Renner) to build insidious political conspiracies and impossible action sequences and existential questions around. "In a strange way," he tells Movieline, "I felt more of a personal connection with this character than I ever felt with Jason Bourne."
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Sure, he adapted the Bourne series, Stephen King’s Dolores Claiborne, 2009’s State of Play, and earned Oscar nods for writing and directing his own politically-tinged thriller, Michael Clayton – but any chat with The Bourne Legacy co-writer/director Tony Gilroy would be remiss without discussing his very first screenplay, amirite? So without further ado, take a triple lutz down memory lane with Movieline and Gilroy as he recalls the joy of seeing his first produced script come to life. That’s right, lovers of Olympian sports sagas and ‘90s-era romance: we’re taking Gilroy back to The Cutting Edge.
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The Bourne Legacy is a passable movie that has the peculiar misfortune of being part of a very successful, influential and distinctive franchise. Box office-wise, this is probably not going to be much of a hardship, but in terms of content and style it definitely suffers in comparison. The Bourne predecessors, particularly the two directed by Paul Greengrass, are by my count some of the most exhilarating action movies in recent cinematic history.
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In a new interview over at The Hollywood Reporter, Jeremy Renner gets real about his on-the-brink career and personal life -- like, so real you'll want to give him a hug and then buy all the tickets for Bourne just to help him on his humble way towards megamillionaire action hero status. He's either a calculatedly brilliant PR strategist or a walking country song. Either way, this dog-loving, single dude, does-his-own-stunts part-time house-flipper is sure to endear himself to all four quadrants with this profile-boosting piece. Oh Jeremy Renner, don't be so sad!
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According to the Phuket Gazette, Bourne Legacy star Jeremy Renner was maybe-sorta (okay not really) involved in an insane-sounding bar brawl this week in Thailand in which an associate was attacked and stabbed by a host of bar employees. Oh, I'm sorry: Bar employees wielding knives and a freaking homemade battle axe. But fear not! It seems Renner, most recently seen in Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol and currently in Thailand shooting his Bourne flick, hightailed it out and escaped unscathed. Wish we could say the same about his reported acquaintance, one Vorasit Issara, who took injuries to his stomach and neck in the melee. [Phuket Gazette, ETonline]
"No, I have no idea about any of it. All I know is that it doesn't preclude Paul [Greengrass] and me from doing another one of ours," original Bourne series star Matt Damon teased recently when asked if he'd show up to pass the torch to Jeremy Renner in Tony Gilroy's 2012 sequel The Bourne Legacy. Cheeky as that answer is, Damon was quick to play nice anyhow. "He's got a whole other thing that they're doing and I wish them well," he added, "and Tony [Gilroy's] really smart. I'm sure they're going to be great." So, no hard feelings. Really. [MTV]
Of the handful of up-and-comers rumored to be in contention for Tony Gilroy's upcoming spy spin-off The Bourne Legacy, 30-year-old Taylor Kitsch's name was frequently bandied about as a potential front-runner for the action franchise. Speaking with Movieline over the weekend while discussing his upcoming film The Bang Bang Club, Kitsch hinted that his turn in Oliver Stone's Savages might make a Bourne outing impossible.
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