By Michileen Martin
Contributing Entertainment Writer
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Universal Pictures made Jason Bourne movies for over a decade, but now the rights have left Universal and are once more up for sale. THR reports that WME, representing the estate of the late author Robert Ludlum, is shopping the rights around not only for the Bourne franchise but for Ludlum's entire library.
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WME has apparently been targeting Netflix, Apple, and Skydance in particular for a sale. It's interesting to consider that rebooting the Bourne franchise in a streaming age could lead to something a little different, like, for example, a "Bourne" TV series or perhaps "Bourne" spinoffs. However, considering how profitable the "Bourne" films have been, it might seem a waste to put them anywhere but the theater.
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Robert Ludlum published "The Bourne Identity" novel in 1980 and in 1988 Richard Chamberlain starred in a same-name TV movie as the eponymous hero. In 2002, Matt Damon starred in a theatrical version of "The Bourne Identity" and since then Damon plus "Bourne" have meant a money-making combination.
The first film made $214 million against a $60 million production budget and Universal's profits only got better with each flick. "The Bourne Supremacy" made $292.5 million in 2004, and 2007's "The Bourne Ultimatum" made more than any "Bourne" film before or since - $442.8 million against a $110 million production budget.
The franchise experienced a bit of a dip with its spinoff film "The Bourne Legacy," which replaced Bourne with a new hero play by Jeremy Renner. It made only $276.1 million against a $125 million budget. But when Damon returned to the role with 2016's "Jason Bourne," things got back on track, earning $415.5 million against a $120 million production budget.
It begs the question of whether or not the "Bourne" franchise is worth pursuing without Matt Damon attached. Universal made five "Bourne" films and the only one that failed to perform was one that starred someone other than Damon. With the star of the upcoming "The Odyssey" at 54 years of age, his days having knife fights in apartments with rival secret agents are probably at an end.
According to THR, Universal tapped Edward Berger ("All Quiet on the Western Front") back in 2023 to bring them a new spin on "Bourne," but nothing came about in time to put a project in production before the rights reverted back.
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