Michael Keaton Will Train An ‘American Assassin’
By Angie Han/March 9, 2016 2:00 pm EST
To be clear, Keaton won’t lead American Assassin. The title role, of a young assassin named Mitch Rapp who carries out covert ops for the CIA, has yet to be cast. Instead, Keaton will play Stan Hurley, described by Deadline as a “shadowy” and “badass Cold War veteran who teaches the young assassin everything he needs to know.” The film begins with Rapp reeling from the death of his fiancée in a terrorist attack. The CIA assigns Hurley to train Rapp in counter-terrorist operations. The pair later join forces with a Turkish agent to stop a mysterious agent from sparking World War III in the Middle East.
Michael Cuesta (Kill the Messenger, Showtime’s Homeland) is directing American Assassin for CBS Films and Lionsgate. Stephen Schiff (Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps, FX’s The Americans) wrote the script based on Vince Flynn’s novel. Lorenzo di Bonaventura and Nick Wechsler are producing. No release date has been set, but shooting is expected to get underway this summer. If American Assassin is a hit, the filmmakers will have plenty of material to mine for sequels, as Rapp is at the center of 14 novels by Flynn.
Said Cuesta:
Stan Hurley is one of the pillars of the Vince Flynn universe and a favorite character for millions of readers, so casting him was a daunting challenge," said Cuesta. “To have an actor as intelligent and gifted as Michael Keaton bring this beloved character to life is a thrill for everyone involved in American Assassin and a cause for celebration amongst ‘Hurley’ fans the world over.
