Paul Greengrass may be hopping from one franchise to another — at least that’s the goal for Paramount as they’re officially negotiating with the Bourne director to helm a new film based on the life of Elliot Ness. If successful, the studio hopes to launch their next big franchise, and while a government agent famous for taking down Al Capone and leading the most prolific Prohibition task force is certainly an unconventional choice, it might prove to be a very smart one, too.

That may hinge on Greengrass, whom THR reports is currently negotiating with Paramount to direct Ness, based on a script by Brian Helgeland, the screenwriter behind L.A. Confidential and, more recently, the Tom Hardy crime pic Legend. Whether or not the film becomes the studio’s next franchise cash cow, that combo of talent makes Ness an intriguing prospect — here’s what makes it flat-out exciting:

In addition to directing, Greengrass would co-produce the film, with Brian Michael Bendis and Marc Andreyko as executive producers. Bendis and Andreyko wrote Torso, the true crime graphic novel which centered on Ness’ 1935 investigation into a serial killer in Cleveland (after he took down Al Capone in Chicago) and which serves as the basis for Paramount’s new film.

Paramount was developing a film based on Torso (with David Fincher briefly attached to direct after Zodiac) years ago, but backed out over budget concerns. Then, in 2013, David Lowery (Pete’s Dragon, Ain’t Them Bodies Saints) signed on to write and direct Torso as an indie thriller without major studio involvement.

Obviously, that didn’t work out, but with Bendis and Andreyko (and Greengrass and Helgeland) on board, Ness officially has our full attention.

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