Hugh Grant Joins 'The Man from UNCLE'

Other than playing a half dozen different characters in last year's Cloud Atlas, we haven't seen very much of Hugh Grant lately. He's only starred in four movies over the last seven years, most of them forgettable (it's a problem when Music & Lyrics is a highlight), and basically it's become a special occasion to see him on screen. So it's kind of a big deal that he's taken on a major studio film with franchise potential, joining Guy Ritchie's The Man from UNCLE.

Instantly becoming the most senior member of a young cast that includes Henry Cavill, Armie Hammer, Alicia Vikander, and Elizabeth Debicki, Grant will play the head of British Naval Intelligence in the remake of the cult favorite TV series. Cavill plays American spy Napoleon Solo, with Hammer as his partner Illya Kuryakin, who battle the forces of global terrorist organization, THRUSH.

Just how closely Ritchie and co-writer Lionel Wigram will stick to TV show's groundwork is unclear. But considering Ritchie and Wigram's Sherlock Holmes has practically nothing to do with detective work, we can probably deduce (like Holmes himself!!) that espionage won't be all that important in The Man from UNCLE.  It's an unexpected move for Grant, who will next revert back to rom-com mode for an untitled film with Marisa Tomei and directed by Marc Lawrence.