Steven Soderbergh and George Clooney considering 'Man From U.N.C.L.E.'

By Adnan Tezer Nov 18, 2010, 17:36 GMT

Steven Soderbergh is in early talks to direct Warner Bros.' long gestating big-screen adaptation of the 1960s TV series "The Man From U.N.C.L.E," with George Clooney possibly starring.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, Scott Z. Burns, who wrote Soderbergh's "The Informant" as well as the director’s upcoming virus thriller "Contagion," is in talks to write the script.

Warners has been working on a big-screen adaptation of "U.N.C.L.E." since the 1990s.

David Dobkin will produce along with John Davis.

"U.N.C.L.E." aired 105 episodes on NBC from 1964-68, during the Cold War era that saw several spy shows on the air. James Bond author Ian Fleming was a contributor to the show's creation.

It follows the exploits of two secret agents, American Napoleon Solo (Robert Vaughn) and Russian Illya Kuryakin (David McCallum), who work for a fictitious secret international law-enforcement agency called U.N.C.L.E. (the United Network Command for Law and Enforcement).

Clooney would be playing Napoleon Solo.

Soderbergh has wrapped Relativity's action film "Haywire," with Channing Tatum, Michael Fassbender, Ewan McGregor and Michael Douglas, and is shooting the virus thriller "Contagion," with Matt Damon, Jude Law and Kate Winslett.

Soderbergh will look to begin production on "U.N.C.L.E." at the end of next year.

Clooney is prepping "The Ides of March," which he is directing and starring in alongside Ryan Gosling, Paul Giamatti and Marisa Tomei. The film will be released in December 2011.