Legendary noughties film rebooted by major streamer with TV series – and it’s hitting screens next year
YESTERDAY Amazon Studios announced they are rebooting a legendary noughties film as a TV series which will be released next year.
The original spy comedy film Mr. and Mrs. Smith was released in 2005 and is now coming back as a TV series.
Mr. and Mrs. Smith starred Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie as John and Jane Smith, a seemingly ordinary couple who were actually spies.
The movie was a big deal at the time, not just because it was a fun action-packed feature, but because it was the beginning of Brangelina. Brad, 59, was married to Jennifer Aniston at the time, while Angelina, 48, was fresh off her divorce from Billy Bob Thornton.
Jennifer, 54, filed for divorce from Pitt less than three months before the movie was released in cinemas. The reason is widely believed to have been Brad’s affair with the Maleficent star, who he later married and had six children with, although they eventually divorced in 2016.
Now, almost 20 years later, Mr. and Mrs. Smith is coming back to screens. However, the series welcomes an all new cast. The reboot stars Donald Glover as John Smith and Maya Erskine as his new bride, Jane Smith.
The series takes the concept of the original movie but puts a new spin on it.
In an unexpected twist, the new John and Jane know that the other is a spy, they’re even working for the same team, and their marriage is one of convenience.
This is a complete change from the 2005 film where John, who claims to be a construction worker, and Jane, who says she’s a tech support consultant, hide their real identities from each other.
The TV show’s official synopsis explains that John and Jane start out as strangers. They “have given up their identities to be thrown together as partners—in espionage and in marriage.”
It continues: “Matched by a mysterious agency, each episode follows them on a new mission and new milestone in their relationship.
“When the cracks begin to show through, they must fight to stay together. Because in this marriage, divorce is not an option.”
Michaela Coel (Black Panther: Wakanda Forever), John Turturro (Transformers), Paul Dano (The Batman), Parker Posey (Scream 3), and Wagner Moura (Narcos) join Donald and Maya to round out the film’s cast.
Donald reunited with Atlanta writer Francesca Sloane to create the series. Both will executive produce the series while Francesca will also serve as showrunner.
Fleabag creator Phoebe Waller-Bridge was previously attached to the project, but exited in 2021, citing creative differences with her co-star.
Mr. and Mrs. Smith is set to hit Prime Video in early 2024 after its release was pushed back from November 2023 by the steamer because of the ongoing Hollywood strikes.
Mr. and Mrs. Smith will be available to stream on Prime Video in 2024.