Sony Spends Big On New 'Robin Hood' Pitch

Robin Hood will never die, at least not at movie studios where a recognizable royalty-free character concept is a big deal. (Above you see Russell Crowe as the character in Ridley Scott's 2010 film.) A new pitch has been making the rounds and Sony is now putting up some big bucks for the story. Just how much the character will be seen is open to question, as the pitch is described as being set "in the world of Robin Hood." Get the available details on the potential new Robin Hood movie below.

Give Variety props for the news and that description. The pitch comes from Cory Goodman and Jeremy Lott, who have reportedly sold the concept to Sony for a "low seven-figure" sum. Not a bad endorsement for the old Englishman, especially when that Ridley Scott version was a middling performer at took home .

All Variety offers beyond that is that this would be "a re-imagining of the classic Robin Hood tale." But isn't everything a reimagining these days?

Indeed, THR has a bit more, and puts that "reimagining" into context. It might not be just the characters that we see in a new light, but the method of introducing them. Specifically, the trade says the large sum paid to the guys for this pitch is reflective of the underlying ambitions at play here. Say it all together: "shared universe." In other words, there's a concept wafting through the halls of Sony that could result in a whole series of films that feature different Robin Hood characters.

It's what Warner Bros. is seemingly trying to do with the King Arthur films, as influenced by Marvel and The Avengers and everything that has been spawned since. THR says specifically "The plan is to make a series of movies focusing on the outlaw archer and his band of Merry Men such as Little John, Friar Tuck and Will Scarlett." Just imagine (and this is THR's wording again) a set of films that are like "Mission: Impossible and the recent Fast & Furious movies," but presumably with bows and arrows and such.