Edward Norton is in negotiations to play the villain in Universal’s “The Bourne Legacy” opposite Jeremy Renner.

Tony Gilroy is on board to direct from a script he penned and Rachel Weisz has also signed on to star.

Plot details are being kept under wraps, but Jason Bourne will not be featured in the film, while Renner will play another assassin trained in the same program that Bourne was trained in. Universal had no comment on Norton’s negotiations.

Frank Marshall, Ben Smith and Jeffrey Weiner are producing.

Besides “The Italian Job,” Norton has not been in full-bore villain mode for some time. The “Bourne” role is his most commercial since starring as the Hulk in Marvel and Universal’s “The Incredible Hulk.”

In previous “Bourne” pics, Universal had not surrounded then-star Matt Damon with high-profile names, but the Gilroy pic is shaping up as a major ensemble piece.

Source: Variety