Although just before jumping in to direct X-Men: First Class, Matthew Vaughn said he was partly doing it because he thought the superhero movie was pretty much dead and would stop being popular soon, it appears he’s not quite giving up on them yet. Talking to Deadline, Matthew Vaughn says he wants to adapt The Golden Age, and has a studio who’s keen to fund it.
While the title partly refers to the generic name for the early comic books of the 1930s, The Golden Age revolves around a retirement facility for superheroes past their prime, with a group of retired heroes trying to help their grandchildren after their parents have turned the world into chaos. The project is based on a yet to be published book by Jonathan Ross, who is, of course, the husband of Jane Goldman, who’s worked on the scripts for several of Vaughn’s movies, including Kick Ass and Frist Class.
Matthew Vaughn wants to have actors attached to the project before a script is written, with such illustrious names as Clint Eastwood, Jack Nicholson, and Warren Beatty on the director’s wish list. While that would certainly be a fantastic cast (and they can throw Morgan Freeman in there too, just for good measure), at the moment that’s just what Vaughn wants, rather than the acots being interested.
However, here’s what the director had to say about the project. “You have these great star names and they’re mainly playing supporting roles now. I want to give them the lead again and let them have some fun.”
At the moment it’s not certain whether Goldman will be involved in the project, with the director possibly seeking other writers (might it be too close to home for Goldman), and there’s the possibility Vaughn may only produce The Golden Age, rather than direct. As you can probably tell, it’s early days, so little is set in stone.