A new trio of crime fighters might utter the trademark greeting “Good morning, Charlie” on the big screen once again. Sony Pictures is in early development on a new feature version of “Charlie’s Angels,” the female-fronted 1970s TV crime drama turned big-screen action movie franchise.
Screenwriter Pete Chiarelli has been tapped to pen a screenplay for the new project, which is in early development at the studio. Chiarelli is best known for his work on “Crazy Rich Asians,” “Now You See Me 2,” “The Proposal” and Sony Pictures Animation’s latest movie “Goat,” which debuted in theaters on Friday. He is repped by UTA, Mosaic and Yorn Levine.
“Charlie’s Angels,” a crime drama about a trio of women working at the Townsend private detective agency, debuted in 1976 and quickly dominated the pop culture conversation. The series originally cast Kate Jackson, Farrah Fawcett and Jaclyn Smith in the leading roles — and catapulted them into TV history. Cheryl Ladd joined the show in season 2 and starred through the rest of its 115-episode run. John Forsythe voiced their unseen boss, Charlie Townsend, who directed the operation over the telephone.
At the turn of the century, Drew Barrymore, Cameron Diaz and Lucy Liu assumed the iconic roles of the crime-fighting angels and launched the franchise into blockbuster territory. The reboot, 2000’s “Charlie’s Angels,” directed by McG, was a major box office success, grossing $264 million worldwide and spawning the 2003 sequel “Charlie’s Angels: Full Throttle.” Barrymore produced the movies under her Flower Films banner
However, more recent attempts to relaunch the franchise have been less successful. The 2011 TV reboot — starring Annie Ilonzeh, Minka Kelly, Rachael Taylor as the angels, with Ramon Rodriguez as Bosley and Victor Garber as the voice of Charlie — was canceled after eight of its 13-episode ordered aired on ABC. In 2019, Elizabeth Banks directed a new installment of the movie franchise, starring Kristen Stewart, Naomi Scott and Ella Balinska as the fighting trio. The film tied in elements of both the original TV series and the 2000s movies — including featuring Banks as one in a network of Bosleys — but the project ultimately underperformed at the box office, earning just $73 million globally.
But as the 50th anniversary of the landmark series approaches, it’s no surprise that Sony is reevaluating its big screen potential. After all, the IP’s cult status remains ubiquitous, and there’s no shortage of brilliant, beautiful actors who’d relish the chance to work for Charlie and kick some ass.
The Hollywood Reporter first reported news of the developing project. Sony had no comment.
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