The Saint: Dougray Scott Remake Series Delayed

Last fall, it was reported that Brightlight Pictures, a Canadian production company, was planning on making a new version of The Saint TV show. The 1962 original stars Roger Moore as suave Simon Templar and the short-lived The Return of the Saint had Ian Ogilvy playing the part in 1978.

The Vancouver-based indie company confirmed plans to film a pilot for a new series with Dougray Scott who was in negotiations to play the lead role.

Sony Pictures Television secured distribution rights to the pilot and planned series outside of the US and Canada and expected to pitch it to UK broadcasters. The only catch was that UK’s ITV Global Entertainment doesn’t hold the rights to the concept but does own the rights to the original series. That could make filming a new version a little tricky.

The pilot was expected to be filmed late last year but that still hasn’t happened. According to Scott, “They’ve been trying to get it done and I thought we were going to do it this year. But there were problems with the script and the studio, so it’s on hold for a bit. That would be for American TV. With these things, even the slightest thing can go wrong. I don’t think it’s going to happen anytime soon. But it’s a great script.”

What do you think? Would you like to see a remake of The Saint? Is Scott right for the role or do you have other casting ideas for the dashing Simon Templar?