Tradecraft: Smart, Undercover And Red All Over

No, I'm not talking about Kim Philby; I'm talking about the spy news from today's trades... 

Variety mentions in two stories that Warner Bros. has once again delayed the sequel to Get Smart.  Star Steve Carell can only fit in two movies a year during his hiatus from The Office.  Last year, the studio postponed Get Smarter (I'm just calling it that... but don't you think they will, too?) so he could make Date Night with Tina Fey.  Now they've put it off a whole other year.  Carell is considering several films in its stead, including a reteaming with Fey.  Personally, I'm not exactly chomping at the bit for a sequel to 2008's theatrical Get Smart film, but I'm not against it either.  I still believe that Steve Carell should be right for the part, and perhaps if they take a page from OSS 117's book, the second time could be the charm...  The delay is mentioned in separate pieces about director Peter Segal's attachment to Neighborhood Watch and one of the other films Carell is thinking about.

Following yesterday's news that Gerald McRaney was playing the boss, now the male lead has been cast in J.J. Abrams' Undercovers.  According to The Hollywood Reporter, it's Boris Kodjoe.  Rather surprisingly in this day and age, this casting is apparently big news because Kodjoe is black.  According to the trade, "Kodjoe is a bold choice for a leading man on a network drama as broadcasters have stuck predominantly with Caucasion leads."  Kadjoe, who previously starred on the Showtime series Soul Food, will play Steven Bloom, half of a husband and wife team of spies.

Variety reports that Summit has set and October 22 release date for the Bruce Willis spy thriller Red.  With such a stellar cast, this is shaping up to be one of the most eagerly anticipated espionage films on the horizon.  The trade refreshes our memories on the plot: "Red, based on the WildStorm/DC comicbook, follows a former black-ops CIA agent who lives a quiet life in retirement until the day a high-tech assassin shows up intent on killing him. With his secret identity compromised and his love interest in danger, he must reassemble his old team to figure out who is out to get them."