Well, I kinda hoped this got deep sixed somewhere along the way, but that Bourne prequel series, Treadstone, is headed to TV. The USA Network has given a straight-to-series order to the show, which will attempt to keep the franchise alive after the lukewarm response to Jason Bourne.
Treadstone is the covert government agency that has been a constant thorn in the rear of badass super-agent Jason Bourne, played by Matt Damon. They’re responsible for behavior modification procedures that have turned regular agents into killing machines, planting these sleeper agents all over the world. The series will follow other sleeper agents that have woken up the same way Bourne did.
Originally conceived as a pilot for USA’s upcoming slate, but they decided to bypass that when negotiations began to heat up with Amazon Studios for the international rights. That means less of a financial burden for USA, more profit, and incentive to invest more attention on the show’s future. I can see Treadstone being a solid replacement for the recently-canceled Shooter, and will probably tap into the same audience.
Tim Kring, best known for NBC’s Heroes, will develop the series. He’s a TV vet with a history of creating franchises on the small screen, so let’s see if he’s the guy to reawaken Bourne. The trick will be how to do it with Matt Damon’s presence. The last time they tried to move on without him it was with Jeremy Renner in The Bourne Legacy, and that did so poorly Damon had to come running back in to save things. [Deadline]
