As reported by The Tracking Board, Academy Award winner Charlize Theron is in talks to play the leading role in the big-screen version of Mark Greaney’s 2009 novel The Gray Man. The book, the first in Greaney’s “Court Gentry” series, was initially published in 2009 with the following official description:
Court Gentry is known as The Gray Man – a legend in the covert realm, moving silently from job to job, accomplishing the impossible, and then fading away. And he always hits his target. But there are forces more lethal than Gentry in the world. And in their eyes, Gentry has just outlived his usefulness.
Now, he is going to prove that for him, there’s no gray area between killing for a living-and killing to stay alive.
Theron, who recently starred in George Miller’s Mad Max: Fury Road, would play a gender-swapped version of the Court Gentry character.
The Gray Man was previously planned for the big screen some years ago with James Gray attached to direct and Brad Pitt rumored to be eyeing the part of Gentry. New Regency Pictures held the screen rights at that time and had Adam Cozad (Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit) attached to provide the screenplay.
Although Captain America: The Winter Soldier‘s Joe and Anthony Russo were originally planning to helm, they’ve now got their hands full with the upcoming Captain America: Civil War and the two part Avengers: Infinity War. A new director has not yet been announced, but he or she will work from the Russos’ script.
If she joins the project, Theron will also produce The Gray Man through her Denver and Delilah label alongside producers Palak Patel and Joe Roth.
