Tradecraft: Brad Anderson to Direct Bourne-esque Shadow Run

Deadline reports that Brad Anderson (The Machinist, Transsiberian) has signed on to direct a "Bourne-esque" spy thriller called Shadow Run for Sony. (If you haven't caught on in years of reading this blog, every spy thriller is described as "Bourne-esque" at this stage. It's how they get sold. I wasn't alive or reading trades back in the Sixties, but I imagine back then they were all called "Bond-esque.") The studio snapped up Joe Gazzam's spec script back in February for Neil Moritz to produce. According to The Hollywood Reporter, "the action is put in motion when a viral attack puts lives in danger, forcing a CIA agent to enact a secret prisoner exchange of Russia’s most notorious spy for the American scientist who can create a cure. It has been described by one source as 'Safe House on a plane.'" I didn't care for Safe House, but I do like planes... so I'll give it the benefit of the doubt! (Plus, of course, I would never judge a movie by a studio source's pithy log line for the script.)