Paul Greengrass walking off 'Bourne 4...?'

Fans of the “Bourne” movies, and this writer is one of them, may have to wait a bit longer for a fourth installment. And believe me, we want one. Paul Greengrass, director of “The Bourne Supremacy” and “The Bourne Ultimatum,” which are on that very short list of sequels better than the originals, has walked away from the fourth movie in the series according to The Playlist, which has a growing reputation for being right on stuff like this.
The Playlist says that two scripts have been commissioned for the project, but that’s not usually a vote of confidence from a studio. George Nolfi, co-writer of “The Bourne Ultimatum,” and currently working on “The Adjustment Bureau,” which also stars Matt Damon, had written a version, but then Universal hired Josh Zetumer, who’s hot right now, developing “The Infiltrator” at Leonardo DiCaprio’s Appian Way production company, and having written the screenplay for Peter Berg’s long-stalled “Dune” remake.
Things seem to have come to a head when Universal didn’t consult Greengrass on the bringing in Zetuner. (There are rumors, though, that no one’s really happy with Nolfi’s script.)
That may not have been the only problem. Greengrass has been making an Iraq War thriller at Universal called “Green Zone,” ostensibly a lower budget project to keep him busy between Bournes. The modest little thriller, according to The Playlist, has definitely cost around $100 million, and some sources think the real figure is closer to $150 million. That doesn’t have the suits at Universal all that happy with Greengrass.
Bear in mind that Iraq War-themed movies haven’t been setting box office records.It’s well known that Greengrass tends to “find” a film during production, which is not the most efficient way to do it. He tends to go back and reshoot a lot. He's done that quite a bit on "Green Zone," and although “The Bourne Ultimatum” was a big hit, it was shot that way. Which means it could have probably been shot cheaper. Bear in mind though that studios are slashing budgets all over the place right now.
It’s also well-known that Damon likes Greengrass and you can certainly doubt that he’d be red hot to make another “Bourne” movie without him. Those fans who want another Greengrass/Damon “Bourne” movie are going to have to hope that the director and the studio kiss and make up. Write your congressman or local studio executive.

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