George Clooney 'set for U.N.C.L.E. film'

Clooney is in talks to play Napoleon Solo in the film version of the TV series

George Clooney is in talks to star in a big screen version of cult 1960s TV show Man from U.N.C.L.E., reports say.

The actor has met director Steven Soderbergh about starring as Napoleon Solo in film about two crime-fighting secret agents, Hollywood Reporter said.

Still in early development, it is thought the film will retain its 1960s setting.

The original TV series, which ran from 1964 to 1968, starred Robert Vaughn in the lead role of Napoleon Solo.

British actor David McCallum also starred as Illya Illya Kuryakin, working as part of the United Network Command for Law Enforcement, fighting the evil organisation Thrush.

Clooney is a long-time collaborator with Soderbergh, the pair working together previously on films including Out of Sight, the Ocean's Eleven series and Syriana, for which Clooney won an Oscar.

But with Soderbergh and Clooney busy with their own projects, it may be some time before the project comes together.

Soderbergh is shooting thriller Contagion starring Matt Damon, Jude Law and Marion Cotillard, while Clooney is working on The Ides of March which he is directing and starring in alongside Ryan Gosling, Paul Giamatti and Marisa Tomei.