This month, USA Network is bringing the Jason Bourne franchise to the small screen, with the upcoming action-thriller series “Treadstone.” Of course, this new series won’t feature Matt Damon (or Jeremy Renner, for that matter), but will continue the story that was laid down in the previous films and follow a new group of individuals that find themselves discovering their own forgotten superspy abilities and history. But what does “Treadstone” mean for the future of the ‘Bourne’ franchise? Well, according to one producer, think of the new series as the “Agents of SHIELD” to the big-screen ‘Avengers.’
Marvel Studios allusion aside, the future of the ‘Bourne’ series on the big screen does seem to be in flux, as the previous “Jason Bourne” and the spin-off failure, “Bourne Legacy,” failed to re-ignite film fans’ love affair with the franchise. That means that “Treadstone” is far from a guaranteed hit.
However, when producer Ben Smith, who worked on the film franchise, as well as the ‘Bourne’ spin-off TV series, was asked about the future of Jason Bourne in cinema, he was optimistic. And in fact, he’s looking to link the TV series to its big-screen siblings.
“I mean we are definitely working on another film,” said the producer (via CinemaBlend). “What we’re doing within that? Will there be connected tissue in terms of are we all existing within the same world and universe? Absolutely. The details of that are still under wraps.”
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Unlike the Marvel Cinematic Universe, there’s not really any concern that the popularity of “Treadstone” and a potential new ‘Bourne’ sequel would lead to some explosion of the franchise into various spin-offs and sequels. Likely, “Treadstone” will remain the TV series version of the story with the films continuing the superspy’s story in the future. But it does show that those thinking about avoiding “Treadstone” might be interested in giving it a shot, as it seems that the show will have some definite franchise DNA woven throughout.
But all this could be for naught if the TV series is a failure. So, if you want to support “Treadstone,” make sure you tune in on October 15 on USA.
