Sharp-suited and rebooted, The Gray Man has recently undergone a new creative overhaul at Sony, with writing duo Joe Shrapnel and Anna Waterhouse coming aboard to rewrite the script.
They’ll pick up the reins left by Joe and Anthony Russo, according to Deadline, who were attached to the project before the Marvel Cinematic Universe came calling for Civil War and the two-part Avengers: Infinity War. It’s understood that Sony is eager to fast-track production on the adaptation, which will be toplined by Mad Max: Fury Road star Charlize Theron in a role that was once filled by Brad Pitt.
Now, after pulling the gender switcheroo we’re beginning to see more and more of, Theron will spearhead The Gray Man as an operative-turned-assassin known as Court Gentry. Based on the eponymous entry into Mark Greaney’s thrilling novel series, the espionage thriller revolves around Court Gentry’s plight to protect his two daughters – daughters who aren’t even aware that he exists.
Naturally, Shrapnel and Waterhouse will be required to tinker with the source material in order to make room for Theron’s introduction, though we’re excited to see the actress topline the crime drama in a post-Furiosa landscape. Indeed, the writing duo are no strangers to adapting work from one medium to the other, having recently worked on CIA adaptation, Circle of Treason, and before that Shrapnel and Waterhouse assisted on The Aftermath for BBC Films.
Christopher McQuarrie is attached to direct The Gray Man, and with production tentatively pegged to get underway at the beginning of 2016 the director will be keen to get the wheels in motion sooner rather than later before returning to Paramount in time to write – and likely direct – the yet-to-be-titled Mission: Impossible 6.
