Sony may give Robin Hood the ‘Avengers’ treatment

Ever since Marvel struck gold with its “Avengers” superhero team-up, Hollywood studios have been clamoring for their own “shared universes,” with characters who can anchor their own movies and also join forces every now and then to rule the box office.

The latest development in the shared-universe arms race comes courtesy of Sony, which is closing in on a pitch for a series of interconnected movies centering on Robin Hood and his band of Merry Men.

The pitch, which is titled “Hood,” comes from Cory Goodman and Jeremy Lott, The Times has confirmed. The Hollywood Reporter first reported details of the project, which is said to be similar in tone to the “Mission: Impossible” and “Fast and Furious” movies.

In other words, “Hood” will attempt to give an attitude adjustment to the heroic archer, swordsman and outlaw of English folklore. Although Robin Hood and his crew — Little John, Friar Tuck, Will Scarlet — have inspired countless movies, TV shows and books over the years, audiences aren’t exactly clamoring for more of their medieval adventures. As recently as 2010, Ridley Scott made “Robin Hood” with Russell Crowe, a costly historical epic that staved off box-office disaster with its overseas gross but never became a hit in the U.S.

If “Hood” can find a way to give a modern edge to the Robin Hood legend, and to make swords, horses and castles as sexy as explosions, sports cars and skyscrapers, it would give Sony a potential new franchise of tent-pole movies. The studio is already trying to develop a different shared universe via its “Amazing Spider-Man” movies, which are branching out to focus on villains in “Sinister Six” and “Venom.”

Nearly every other studio has similar projects in the works. Disney, of course, has its ever-expanding Marvel Cinematic Universe, which includes “The Avengers” and “Guardians of the Galaxy”; the studio also has big plans for “Star Wars,” including a new trilogy and standalone spin-off movies.

At the same time, Warner Bros. is developing its DC properties into a universe populated by Batman, Superman and Wonder Woman; Fox is building out its “X-Men” franchise; and Universal is rebooting and unifying its classic monsters.

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