Don't expect to see Matt Damon as Jason Bourne anytime soon.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, the 43-year-old actor will not be returning as Jason Bourne in the next installment of the Bourne franchise. Frank Marshall, who is the longtime producer of the action franchise, told THR that the actor will not be reprising his role as the super-spy agent.
"It's simply not true," Marshall told THR.
There have been rumors that Universal Studios pushed back the release date of the untitled new Bourne movie to 2016, in order to accommodate for Damon's possible return. The release date was reportedly pushed back from August 14, 2015 to July 15, 2016.
Marshall told THR that the next installment film will feature the Aaron Cross character played by actor Jeremy Renner in the 2012 installment of the film. The move is set to be directed by Justin Lin.
"[Director] Justin Lin is working with Andrew Baldwin on an Aaron Cross (Jeremy Renner) script/story that they pitched us a few months ago." Marshall told THR. "I talk to Justin all the time and the script is not ready. It's a summer movie, and if we don't start preproduction now, we can't make next summer. Therefore, it's a wise decision to move to 2016."
Damon had previously said that he was "open" to another Bourne movie, but one if Paul Greengrass was attached as the director. Greengrass directed "The Bourne Supremacy" and "The Bourne Ultimatum".
"I've always been open to it if Paul Greengrass is the director," the actor told CNBC in May. "We've just never been able to come up with a story... It felt like such a good way to end it last time. Having said that, I love that character. I'd love to see what happened to him."
The next installment of the Bourne franchise is set to release on July 15, 2016.
