It wasn’t too long ago that Keira Knightley, Evangeline Lilly, and Felicity Jones were all vying for the role of Jack Ryan’s wife in the upcoming Jack Ryan reboot. Now director and star Kenneth Branagah and Paramount have made their choice and they are going with Keira Knightley. Though the actress has much more cinematic experience than any of the other two – which may or may not have factored into the decision – either of the two actress that weren’t picked would have been excellent choices.

Knightley will play Jack Ryan’s wife in the film. It has been reported that this role will require some involvement in the action sequences in the film, something that was never really seen from any of the other actresses who portrayed Jack Ryan’s wife in the previous installments. Jack Ryan will be played by Chris Pine, who has been long attached to play the role.

The Hollywood Reporter says that Knightley had been Paramount’s pick from the start, but Branagah wanted to test the waters to see how the other actresses fared. In the end the choice was clear, and Knightley got the role. In addition to Lilly and Jones, Kate Beckinsale and Jennifer Biel were also in the running before they had to pull out.

The new film finds Jack Ryan, an ex-marine, working as a financial analyst in Moscow, Russia. During his time there, he discovers that his employers are planning to devalue the price of the America dollar to nothing. The trade confirms that the film is a prequel to Jack Ryan’s series of books that have were already adapted for the big screen. It should be interesting to see how producer Lorenzo di Bonaventura will implement the action elements into a film that centers on the destruction of a country’s financial infrastructure.

This marks the first time that Knightley and Branagah will be working together on a film. Production for the untitled Jack Ryan reboot is expected to begin next month.

[Source: THR]