'Casino Royale' director back in the spy game

Martin Campbell demonstrates how to
make a flying pigeon shadow hand puppetMartin Campbell, who directed two of the coolest Bond flicks ever, has been tapped by United Artists to kick-start what could become a whole new spy movie franchise.

Two executive producers on the TV series “24” — Joel Surnow and Michael Loceff — will write the as-yet-untitled film, according to Variety.

Campbell directed 2006's “Casino Royale” and 1995's “GoldenEye,” which kicked off the Bond tenures of Daniel Craig and Pierce Brosnan, respectively. Who'll be the big star in United Artists' new spy tale?

Variety notes that United Artists is partly owned by Tom Cruise, and the studio “has made it a priority to find a commercially viable franchise for Cruise.”

But, UA isn't confirming whether or not America's favorite couch-jumping Scientologist will star in the film.

I'm psyched, even if this just turns out to be another Cruise vehicle. He was so good in “Mission: Impossible III,” he made me forget his off-screen eccentricities. And I've never seen “24,” but some folks I know (whose taste in television I trust) swear it's great stuff. Add director Martin Campbell to the mix and this could be one sweet flick.

(Jorge Sosa is a staff writer for the Hutchinson Leader. He can be reached at sosa@hutchinsonleader.com)