Soderbergh discusses his U.N.C.L.E. plans

Last month, the Omaha World-Herald reported on an appearance by Steven Soderbergh in which the director referenced his plans to do a movie based on The Man From U.N.C.L.E. Now a recording of that appearance has surfaced.

On the Studio 360< Web site, there's a short story that includes an audio recording of Soderbergh’s comments in Omaha. In the recording, Soderbergh, 48, confirms he’s down to two unproduced films before he retires as a director.

“Liberace and The Man From U.N.C.L.E. are the only things I’m obligated to do,” Soderbergh said starting about 40 minutes into the session. “To do Liberace with Matt Damon and Michael Douglas and to do Man From U.N.C.L.E. with George (Clooney)…that’s a great way to have a sort of farewell tour. George and I found ourselves at the right time…For years we’ve both been trying to find something to do.”

In response to a questioner, Soderberg says Clooney would play Napoleon Solo. The Liberace film is a movie biography with Douglas the entertainer and Damon as his lover.

No other details were disclosed and all of Soderbergh’s comments come at the end of the recording. But it is an on-the-record confirmation of what has been reported so far in the entertainment press. Meanwhile, Clooney, who turns 50 on May 6, is directing and starring in a movie called The Ides of March, which is being filmed in Michigan, according to the Detroit Free Press.

Soderbergh tells Omaha audience he’s still interested in U.N.C.L.E.

Director Steven Soderbergh, during an appearance in Omaha, said he’s still interested in doing a movie version of The Man From U.N.C.L.E. as a farewell to making films, according to an account by the Omaha World-Herald.

Soderbergh apparently only made a fleeting mention in Omaha. Here’s an excerpt from near the end of the Omaha newspaper article:

His last movie, he said, might be the big-screen version of “The Man From U.N.C.L.E.,” starring George Clooney. He called movies with Damon and Clooney, both of whom have worked with him many times, “a great way to have a farewell tour.”

This would appear to be the first time Soderbergh has openly, and publicly, acknowledged his interest in doing an U.N.C.L.E. movie as his last film. Soderbergh’s interest was originally reported by the Hollywood Reporter in November. But that report didn’t have a direct comment by Soderbergh.

Clooney has been previously mentioned in connection with a Soderbergh version of U.N.C.L.E. Does Soderbergh’s quote indicate he’s interested in having Damon be part of the movie also?