‘That Man From Rio’: Sydney Sweeney & Justin Lin Team For Apple’s Remake Of 1960’s James Bond Spoof That Inspired Indiana Jones

The other day, actress Sydney Sweeney awkwardly answered a question about a recent Bond Girl casting rumor for Denis Villeneuve‘s “Bond 26,” only for a new action adventure role in a similar vein to be revealed today, with a lead role in “That Man From Rio.”

According to a report from Deadline, Sweeney is now attached to star in a Apple Original Films remake of the 1964 French-Italian film “That Man From Rio” with Justin Lin (“Star Trek Beyond”) set to direct, who has been helming multiple installments of “The Fast & The Furious” franchise for decades, until an abrupt departure on “Fast X,” making this very much in the filmmaker’s wheelhouse. As the pic follows, “a young French private on military leave comes to the rescue of his girlfriend, who’s been abducted by thieves and brought to Rio de Janeiro.”

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That original movie, considered one of the better James Bond spoofs of the era (that may have been why Sweeney was thrown off by the Bond Girl question), was helmed by Philippe de Broca with notable leading man Jean-Paul Belmondo and Françoise Dorléac (the older sister of Catherine Deneuve) in the main roles, which ended up earning an Academy Award nomination for the script in 1965. It also helped influence other romantic action-adventure films in Hollywood, like “Romancing the Stone” and the “Indiana Jones” franchise.

“IT” and “Naked Singularity” screenwriter Chase Palmer wrote the new iteration of “That Man In Rio” with Sweeney attached as producer alongside Lin through his production banner Perfect Storm Entertainment and Kevin Walsh of The Walsh Company.

Another big step would be finding Sweeney’s male lead, and we can’t help but think that perhaps, a reunion with her “Anything But You” co-star Glen Powell might be a good pick given his recent ascention to appearing in action projects like “Top Gun: Maverick,” “Twisters,” and leading the upcoming Edgar Wright-directed remake of “The Running Man.” Then again, there are plenty of other leading man hopefuls that could fill that spot, too.

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Sweeney’s most recent effort, the boxing biopic drama “Christy,” opens in theaters on November 7.