Cinematical

Apparently there was a TV series in the late 1960s called It Takes a Thief. It ran for three seasons, starred Robert Wagner (whoa - and Fred Astaire!) and, quite frankly, sounds fantastic. In the series, Wagner played "the world's greatest cat burglar" who, after his arrest, struck a deal with government: he was pardoned, but had to steal whatever they (in the form of the SIA, a made-up-for-the-show government agency; in the movie it'll be the CIA) asked him to steal. So basically, all charges were dropped, and he got to travel the world, doing what he loved. That's punishment? We should all be so lucky.

Universal, also, digs the concept and, after a decade of hemming and hawing and almost casting Michael Douglas, they've hired Will Smith to star in their movie version. (Wow, that was a near thing - Michael Douglas doing anything remotely cool is less and less convincing. Plus, I still get a kick out of race-blind casting. So sue me.) The script is currently being revamped by David Elliot and Paul Lovett, who reportedly have the "fresh take" that has finally brought the movie to the forefront of Universal's schedule. Hopefully that take involves a sense of humor and lightness, as opposed to a need to turn the series into another all action, all the time Smith flick.