Secret Service Academy

No, Mahoney and the gang aren't moving up in the world. Rather, Deadline reports that Universal is developing a fact-based movie about the U.S. Secret Service's recruiting and training program. According to the trade blog, "the studio has optioned a [fascinating 2009] cover story in the Washington Post Magazine by Laura Blumenfeld, and set Greg Poirier to write the script.... Blumenfeld went through the training program to write her article and it included shooting weapons, hand-to-hand combat, psychological and other training methods." So, sort of like The Recruit, but with the Secret Service instead of the CIA? And hopefully better? While Poirier's produced credits like The Spy Next Door and National Treasure: Book of Secrets might not inspire much confidence in this project, he also created ABC's upcoming fall spy series Missing, and that pilot was an excellent read. Based on that alone, I'd be excited for his next script even if the premise didn't sound this interesting. Deadline goes on to reveal that "the Secret Service differs from most law-enforcement branches in that applicants don't need a law enforcement background to apply [lending] an everyman aspect to a film that will follow a group of aspirants who go through the training program to become agents."