Things are progressing for the American adaptation of the French series and original Canal + creation
Le Bureau des Légendes
.
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In February 2023, the Showtime channel announced that it was launching production on a remake of Éric Rochant's series, called
The Department
, and that it was entrusting the direction and production to
George Clooney
.
Also read: The Bureau of Legends: George Clooney will direct the American remake
A year later, casting is underway and starting to take shape.
According to the American site of
Variety
, Michael Fassbender would be approached to play the main role of the series.
The German-Irish actor, seen notably in the
Steve Jobs
biopic and the
X-Men
and
Alien
franchises , recently starred in David Fincher's film
The Killer
.
He could reprise the role of Guillaume Debailly, alias Malotru, played, in the original and French version, by Mathieu Kassovitz.
If he accepts this role in
The Department
, he will make his return to the small screen after sixteen years of absence.
He starred in the British miniseries
The Devil's Whore
.
Also read: Éric Rochant: “The Bureau of Legends does not fantasize about espionage”
The spy series
The Bureau of Legends
, which had five seasons broadcast from 2015 to 2020, offers an immersion within the Directorate General of External Security (DGSE).
The story follows the journey of several characters and in particular that of Guillaume Debailly, a former agent infiltrated in Syria for six years, returning to France.
Under the name
The Bureau
, the original Canal + creation enjoyed great worldwide success, particularly across the Atlantic.
In 2010, the
New York Times
ranked it among the three best foreign series of the year.
The Department
will follow in the footsteps of Homeland, one of our channel's biggest hits
Chris McCarthy, president of Showtime
The Department
will be co-produced by MTV Entertainment Studios, 101 Studios and Smoke House Pictures, George Clooney's production company.
The 62-year-old American actor will also be behind the camera.
Although he has already directed around ten feature films, he will direct his first series here.
In 2023, he filmed the film The
Boys in the Boat
, an adaptation of the eponymous book about the eight-man rowing team at the 1936 Summer Olympics.
Also read: George Clooney helped rebuild a Var town devastated by floods
Filming on this highly anticipated remake is expected to begin this spring in London.
Last year, Chris McCarthy, the president of the Showtime channel, did not hide his ambitions about this project and declared:
“
The Department
will follow in the footsteps of
Homeland
, one of the greatest successes of our channel.
Viewers will be plunged even deeper into a world of intrigue and subterfuge with complicated characters, who struggle with their own demons while combating the existential threats facing the Nation and the world.
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