The current word on the net is that Jeremy Renner is about to be offered the lead role in Tony Gilroy's The Bourne Legacy .
This rumour, which should be consumed with a big pinch of sodium chloride, comes courtesy of Latino Review.
Oddly, Renner wasn't said to be writer-director Gilroy's first choice: that accolade fell to Oscar Issac ( Robin Hood , Sucker Punch ), but Universal Pictures vetoed that leftfield choice in favour of the more bankable Renner.
Whoever finally gets the lead role won't actually be replacing Matt Damon (there's a hope he might reprise his role further down the line), but will be a new character appearing in a parallel storyline.
Expect the protagonist to be another Treadstone agent with similar skills to Jason Bourne.
It has been one of the most hotly-contested roles of recent months, with names as diverse as James Franco, Shia Labeouf, Jake Gyllenhaal and Paul Dano, among others, touted.
Renner certainly has the requisite action brawn and, vitally, the acting ability to hold a candle to Damon, but a Bourne-less Legacy still sounds like a tough sell.
And, on a skeptical note, it'll be interesting to see if Renner will actually be able to fit Legacy into his franchise-heavy schedule, amidst playing Hawkeye in The Avengers (and possibly more Marvel movies), and potentially carrying future Mission: Impossible installments.
