Tradecraft: Steve Zaillian Returns to Jack Ryan (Updated)

Deadline reports that Steve Zaillian (Schindler's List) is the latest writer to try his hand at Paramount's Jack Ryan franchise reboot set to star Chris Pine.  The in-demand, Oscar-winning screenwriter is no stranger to the spy genre in general or to Tom Clancy's hero in particular; his spy filmography includes The Falcon and the Snowman (1985), Misison: Impossible (1996) and The Interpreter (2005), as well as Clear and Present Danger (1994) and, according to Deadline, an uncredited pass on Patriot Games (1992), both of which starred Harrison Ford as Ryan. Zaillian's involvement follows drafts by Hossein Amini, Adam Cozad, Anthony Peckham and Cozad again. The trade blog reports that Zaillian is now expected to "bring it home." As previously reported, Jack Bender (Lost) is directing, and the movie, tentatively known as Moscow, is expected to be a prequel (not based on a Clancy novel) set before Jack Ryan ever worked for the CIA. Deadline reports that the script is rumored to feature the horrific helicopter crash that Ryan (Alec Baldwin) recalls in The Hunt For Red October.

The Hollywood Reporter adds that the movie was supposed to start shooting in Budapest this March, but shooting had already been pushed back to some nebulous time in the spring. According to the trade, "Zaillian boarding the project will push the start date further, possibly up to four or five weeks, although Paramount can’t risk any more time since the studio needs Pine for the Star Trek sequel, which will also likely be nudged slightly, but not enough to impact its release date."