After many years and almost as many takes on the Robin Hood character, you might be forgiven for thinking that there is nothing new to say about the man. But Sony disagrees, putting the finishing touches on a deal to buy a new pitch set in his world, simply called **Hood.
Cory Goodman and Jeremy Lott are the writers behind what is, by our count, the 730rd take on the tale of the outlaw Robin of Locksley, his Merry Men and Maid Marian. The exact details of what the new script will do to or say about the legend are being kept quiet beyond the idea that it'll be the start of an action franchise and – of course! – a potential shared universe of Merry Men movies. But it was compelling enough to ignite a bidding war that also saw Working Title and Paramount looking to buy it up.
Sony ended up the victor with Michael De Luca securing the rights and kicking off the deal. Now we’ll wait and see whether the world wants a new **Hood **or whether it’ll largely shrug at the idea, much as it did with Ridley Scott’s 2010 take, which evolved from a plot-tweaking version into a much more traditional tale.
One question: given the Hood title, does anyone else have the creeping sensation that this might be another cool young hoodie take on the legend, like the BBC series of a few years back? Naah, probably just us.