Universal Studios – you may have heard of them – have officially purchased the rights to almost every novel Robert “Bourne” Ludlum ever wrote in his life.

Clearly not satisfied with making over a mere billion dollars with the Bourne trilogy (to become quadrology by 2010), the uber-studio has now bought all the remaining works of the thriller writer, as well as the character of Jason Bourne. They’re clearly creating a monster.

The only two novels they didn’t get in the deal were The Matarese Circle (nabbed by MGM) and The Chancellor Manuscript (purchased by Paramount). That still leaves some other 20-odd novels to go.

Universal are currently developing The Sigma Protocol, with Simon Kinberg (writer of Jumper and X-Men: The Last Stand) in line to write and direct.

Sounds pretty good, but the one question remains – can Jason Bourne possibly stand the test of time? Will he be as loved in forty years as Bond?

Source: Variety