Rege-Jean Page to Star in ‘The Saint’
Hollywoodreporter.com: Paramount is seeing Regé-Jean Page’s halo.
Page, the breakout actor from Neflix’s Bridgerton, has come aboard to star in and executive produce the studio’s reboot of The Saint. At the same time, playwright and actor Kwame Kwei-Armah has been brought in to write a new draft of the script for the adventure thriller. This is Page’s second project with Paramount following the upcoming Dungeons & Dragons.
Producing The Saint are Lorenzo di Bonaventura and Brad Krevoy, as well as Robert Evans, who died in 2019 and will receive a posthumous credit.
The moves put new energy behind the long-gestating project, which as late as last year had Chris Pine attached and Dexter Fletcher directing. That iteration of the project is now shelved, although Fletcher’s current involvement remains unclear. The filmmaker is well-regarded within the studio — he is currently directing Paramount Television Studios’ making-of-The Godfather limited series The Offer for Paramount+.
Saint is based on the early 20th century adventure novels by Leslie Charteris that featured a mysterious man named Simon Templar taking down various bad guys. The character proved quite popular, appearing in comics, serials and, of course, movies and television. Roger Moore famously starred in the 1960s British TV series of the same name, while Val Kilmer starred in Paramount’s 1997 film The Saint as a master of disguise. The logline for the new version is being kept under wraps.
Kwei-Armah co-wrote 892, an indie drama now shooting with John Boyega in the lead. He is also writing the Spike Lee musical All Rise. As a playwright, he won the Peggy Ramsey award and is currently serving as artistic director of The Young Vic in London.
Page’s work as Bridgerton heartthrob Simon Basset made him one of Hollywood’s most sought-after actors, with legions of fans disappointed when news came down in April that he would not be returning for the Netflix period drama’s second season.
Since his ascension to the top of Hollywood ranks, he lined up roles in the Russo brothers’ The Gray Man with Chris Evans and Ryan Gosling, as well as Paramount’s Dungeons & Dragons movie. Saint, which would reteam him with Paramount, would be his first time headlining a studio feature.
Page is repped by CAA, Mosaic, The Artists Partnership and attorney Greg Slewett. Kwei-Armah is repped by United Agents, Gotham Group, Redefine Entertainment and Lichter, Grossman.