Everyone is acutely aware that Hollywood loves to plunder its past (these days mostly the recent past, but whatever). Old movies and television shows are often given a fresh coat of paint and presented to audiences for the sake of nostalgia and brand name recognition.
The latest classic television show to be given the big screen treatment is 60’s favorite The Man From U.N.C.L.E.
The Man From U.N.C.L.E. was a hugely popular show that ran from 1964-1968. It followed Napoleon Solo (Robert Vaughn) and Illya Kuryakin (David McCallum), agents of United Network Command for Law Enforcement (U.N.C.L.E.) as they battled T.H.R.U.S.H. (Technological Hierarchy for the Removal of Undesirables and the Subjugation of Humanity).
Released at the height of 1960’s spy fever, the show was a huge success, leading to a spin-off (The Girl From U.N.C.L.E) and some of the episodes were edited together, and extra footage added for international big screen releases.
According to popular myth, James Bond creator Ian Fleming had a hand in the creation of the show and quite a few Hollywood greats such as Richard Donner, Robert Towne and Harlan Ellison cut their teeth working on it.
A Man From U.N.C.L.E. film has been in development for well over a decade – with Quentin Tarantino’s name once bandied about in connection to the project. If the film does make it before the big screen, then it would complete the trinity of popular sixties spy shows to leap from the small screen to the silver one – alongside I Spy and Get Smart.
For The Man From U.N.C.L.E movie, writer Max Borenstein has been hired by Warner Bros. to pen a script for the film, which is set to be directed by David Dobkin (Wedding Crashers).
It remains to be seen if U.N.C.L.E. will take the same comedic approach as the above mentioned adaptations, but considering that the show wasn’t wholly serious, then it would be safe to assume that there will be comedy (coupled with Dobkin’s attachment).
So let the dream casting commence. Who would you like to see portray Napoleon Solo and Illya Kuryakin in the 21st Century?
