The Jason Bourne movies bear only a passing resemblance to Robert Ludlum’s original books. Other than a few character names and the central trigger – a forgetful spy – a casual observer would not find much to connect the two.
The original story involved Carlos the Jackal and was adapted into a 1988 television movie starring Richard Chamberlain and Jaclyn Smith.
The massive gap between source material and end product hasn’t stopped Universal, though. They have made their studio the permanent home of Jason Bourne by signing a new deal for the character. NBCUniversal announced earlier this week that it has acquired all rights, excluding publishing, to Robert Ludlum’s Jason Bourne, Treadstone, and other related books.
There are, unbelievably, 22 books in the series, with continuation novels written by Eric Van Lustbader and then Brian Freeman. Ludlum only wrote the first three.
The acquisition reportedly grants them the rights in perpetuity, which means they can make, remake, reboot, and prequelize everything to their hearts content, and it will all be under the Universal banner.
WME, the publisher, began shopping the rights to the franchise around as the current deal had run out at Universal. Universal acted fast to regain them and lock them in. Universal Pictures president Peter Cramer says in a statement:
“Since its debut in 2002, the iconic Bourne franchise has reshaped the spy genre with groundbreaking films that set new standards for cinematic action. We’re energized to continue expanding the Bourne universe into the future with exciting new stories for global audiences.”
New instalments of the franchise are in the pipeline, with Frank Marshall lined up to produce them. It could be some form of reboot, or Matt Damon could return. The way forward is unclear at this time.
