Armie Hammer was in New York on Wednesday night to debut 20 minutes of footage for "The Lone Ranger," the upcoming blockbuster he stars in with Johnny Depp, but the 26-year-old may have had Tom Cruise on his mind. According to Deadline.com, Hammer has joined Cruise in the Warner Bros. adaptation of '60s television series "The Man From U.N.C.L.E." Guy Ritchie is directing the film for the studio.
That Hammer would eventually find his way to "The Man From U.N.C.L.E." is hardly surprising. Since the project was first announced in 2010 with Steven Soderbergh set as director and George Clooney in the starring role, numerous leading men have had their names attached to the spy thriller -- especially after Clooney was forced out due to an injury.
"I think in the end we talked about a lot of people. Matt [Damon] was busy; I think we considered a lot of different folk," screenwriter Scott Z. Burns, who wrote the "Man From U.N.C.L.E." script that Soderbergh was planning to direct, told Collider in January of this year. "It just didn't come together."
Channing Tatum, Bradley Cooper, Ryan Gosling and Michael Fassbender were all discussed as possibilities for the film, but no one signed on in any official capacity. Cruise was attached back in March, though, giving "Man From U.N.C.L.E." renewed life. According to Deadline.com, Hammer will play a version of Illya Kuryakin, a Russian agent who worked with Napoleon Solo (Cruise in the new film; Robert Vaughn on the television series) in the spy organization. Back when Cooper was entertaining the idea of starring in "The Man From U.N.C.L.E.," Joel Edgerton was attached to play Kuryakin.
Hammer plays the title role in Disney's "The Lone Ranger," which is out on July 3. Should he have any questions about his "Man From U.N.C.L.E." part, though, he could ask Depp during the press tour: Depp was reportedly discussed as a possibility for the Kuryakin role back in 2011.
For more on Hammer's role, hit Deadline.com.
[via Deadline.com]
