James Franco as The Bourne...

Why He’s Perfect: Ask the Hollywood rumour mill. If you believe the Chinese whispers emerging from the industry, Franco has as good as bagged himself the lead in the new Bourne franchise, although crucially, he won’t be playing Bourne himself. He’ll likely be another victim of Treadstone’s brainwash-heavy training program, possibly a contemporary of the great man himself.

So would he be up to the job? Well, his performance in 127 Hours would suggest he’d be up to the task physically, and we already know he’s got charm and warmth in spades. Okay, so he might not have a lot of action credits on his CV, but Matt Damon was hardly Arnie when he joined the series. Franco is the frontrunner by a distance, and to our minds, an excellent choice.

Essential Scene: We don’t want Franco doing a straight cover version of Damon’s performance. We’d like to see his character as a more louche, fun-loving oper♑ative, so a boozy seduction scene would be most welcome.

But if Franco can't do it...

Tom Hardy as The Bourne...

Why He’s Perfect: Because he’s just at the tipping point between rising talent and full-on superstar. With his role in the third Batman film set to send him into the stratosphere, it would be the perfect time to give him his own franchise.

Talent-wise, he’s got the bruising, bulky frame to convince that he could kill with his bare hands, whilst he’s also smooth enough to pass himself off as a globe-trotting man of mystery. He’ll be linked with every action film that comes along post-Batman. Lets get him signed up to one with a bit of pedigree, eh?

Essential Scene: A visceral hand-to-hand scrap, with Tom using nothing but an old sock and a tennis ball to bludgeon his opponent to death.

But if Hardy can’t do it…

Mark Wahlberg as The Bourne...

Why He’s Perfect: If Gilroy is looking to avoid the “reboot” tag and wants to keep the fourth film in a similar vein to the original three, we reckon Mark Wahlberg should be his man. He’s a similar age to Damon, has an action track-record as long as your arm, and crucially, given a snappy script, he can be an excellently curmudgeonly presence.

We see him as another jaded Treadstone operative, a la Bourne. Perhaps he’s on the white-collar side of things, but calls on his original training when he goes rogue? In any case we’re imagining him channelling Staff Sergeant Dignam, with more punching. Lots more punching.

Essential Scene: A sneering Wahlberg calls his Treadstone boss a cocksucker, prompting him to send a fleet of assassins on his tail.

But if Wahlberg can’t do it…

Ryan Gosling as The Bourne...

Why He’s Perfect: Well he’s got Matt Damon’s seal of approval for a start. I think you could do some (Bourne) movies with another actor,” said the star, “whether it’s Ryan Gosling or Russell Crowe or Denzel Washington.”

For our money, Washington and Crowe are a little long in the tooth to be killing people with rolled-up tabloids, but Gosling could be an interesting fit. He’s got plenty of the tortured soul about him, which tends to be fairly high on the agenda in the Treadstone employment policy. A solid, leftfield pick.

Essential Scene: Gosling receives a visit from a shadowy figure, setting him on the way towards taking down Treadstone. Matt Damon cameo, perhaps?

But if Gosling can’t do it…

Chris Pine as The Bourne...

Why He’s Perfect: With director Tony Gilroy keen to distinguish between his lead and Jason Bourne, it might be that he opts to focus on a significantly younger character this time around. Perhaps we’ll see the Treadstone recruitment process in its early stages, rather than in woozy flashback?

If so, Chris Pine’s cocky, fresh-faced persona might provide a good template by which to show the gradual de-humanising process imposed by the Treadstone bigwigs on their super-soldiers. Watching him go from bluff wisecracks to neck-snapping assassinations would be interesting. However, the fact that he’s already playing Jack Ryan in upcoming thriller Moscow , means it’s sadly unlikely to happen. Unless they go for an inter-franchise tie-up…

Essential Scene: We want to see the precise moment that Treadstone enter his life. Do they have talent scouts, or what?

But if Pine can’t do it…

Armie Hammer as The Bourne...

Why He’s Perfect: It would probably raise a few eyebrows, but after Hammer’s superlative performance in The Social Network , we want to see much, much more of him.

He looks as though he’s got the physique to carry it off, and he’s got great comic timing, which might help introduce some welcome levity to proceedings. An alternative choice to Chris Pine if they decide to go down the younger operative route.

Essential Scene: An unexpected visit from his twin brother leads🌱 to all kinds of hilarious misunderstandings at Treadstone HQ.

Naomi Rapace as The Girl On The Run...

Why She’s Perfect: Plot details are few and far between at present, with Gilroy’s film said to bear little resemblance to Robert Ludlum’s book of the same name, but it wouldn’t be a Bourne film if our hero didn’t find himself entangled with a glamorous girl on the run.

Naomi Rapace would be our ideal pick here, having got “kick-arse heroine with a vulnerable streak” down pat. The Bourne movies often have a European flavour to their supporting cast, and we don’t see why that should be any different this time around.

Essential Scene: Something that allows Naomi to slip into an evening dress. We feel a bit sorry for her having to wear motorcycle leathers the whole time…

But if Rapace can’t do it…

Emily Blunt as The Girl On The Run...

Why She’s Perfect: With rumours linking Blunt with a part in The Dark Knight Rises having cooled, allow us to start the bandwagon campaigning for her to be the next “Bourne Girl.”

Seriously, she already missed out on Iron Man 2 , she would have made a great Catwoman (in our opinion)…she’s crying out for a leading role in a big, action franchise! Get it sorted Gilroy…

Essential Scene: We see her as a refined figure who becomes dragged along for the ride after a chance encounter with Bourne. Some sort of diplomat perhaps?

But if Blunt can’t do it…

Marion Cotillard as The Girl On The Run...

Why She’s Perfect: Her mysterious, bewitching turn in Inception suggested the kind of trouble-magnet that could well lead an international assassin off the straight and narrow.

Beautiful, but giving off a distinctly sorrowful air, Cotillard would make for exactly the sort of femme fatale to get caught in the Treadstone crosshairs. We’d like to see her opposite Tom Hardy for the contrast of bird-like beauty with macho hulk.

Essential Scene: A tearful Cotillard runs full pelt into Hardy, a ruthless assassin hot on her tail. Over to you Tom…

But if Cotillard can’t do it…

Julia Stiles as The Girl On The Run...

Why She’s Perfect: Just because Jason Bourne won’t be returning, there’s no reason why all the supporting players have to end up on the scrapheap. Stiles’ character Nicky Parsons betrayed Treadstone to help Bourne in the last film. It would make sense that this wouldn’t go down well if discovered by her superiors…

We’d like to see Stiles given centre stage after some sterling support work throughout the series. And the “legacy” of Bourne’s escape could well be some serious trouble for Nicky…

Essential Scene: A scene directly picking up where the last film left off, in which Nicky is spotted grinning at the telly and brought in for questioning.

But if Stiles can’t do it…

Blake Lively as The Girl On The Run...

Why She’s Perfect: Her recent turn in The Town has convinced us she’d be perfect for this. Tough exterior, damaged beauty, vague air of desperation…all are excellent qualities for a Bourne love interest.

Unsurprisingly, she’s another to have caught Chris Nolan’s eye in his casting search for The Dark Knight Rises , and if she’s good enough for him, she’s good enough for us.

Essential Scene: After a night of passion with our Bourne-a-like, poor Blake witnesses him go toe-to-toe with a masked intruder, wearily reali🌸sing what she’s let herself in for.

Jeff Bridges as The Treadstone Boss...

Why He’s Perfect: Traditionally, the Treadstone bigwigs have been played by elder statesmen with a reputation for playing characters touched with menace and corruption. Brian Cox, Albert Finney and Joan Allen all fit that bill to a tee.

We’d quite like to see a less conventional approach this time around, and cuddly Jeff Bridges would be suitably jarring as a cold-hearted suit. He’s played villains before, granted, but we still can’t help warming to him whenever he’s on screen. Setting him up as Treadstone’s big bad could play on that nicely…

Essential Scene: Big Jeff learns another agent has gone rogue, before calling the head of recruitment to his office for a thorough bollocking.

But if Bridges can’t do it…

Josh Brolin as The Treadstone Boss...

Why He’s Perfect: He’d be a bit younger than the usual villainous head honchos, but he could easily be cast as an ambitious up-and-comer looking to boost his career by bringing a rogue agent back under Treadstone control.

Plus, Josh Brolin has a villainous streak in him a mile wide, and we like it. Pitting him against Mark Wahlberg would be a sure-fire way to guara🥃ntee sparks flying…

Essential Scene: Brolin’s character turns out to be able to resurrect and communicate with the dead…no, wait, that didn’t work so well last time. Forget it, forget it…

But if Brolin can’t do it…

Laurence Fishburne as The Treadstone Boss...

Why He’s Perfect: A brooding, mercurial presence, perfect for the slippery, two-faced climes of Treadstone upper-management. Fishburne has got moral ambiguity in spades, so much so that we were always half-expecting Morpheus to reveal himself as a villain, even though he was probably the most clear-cut hero in science-fiction history.

This sort of role in the Bourne universe usually goes to a performer of significant gravitas, and Fishburne has got more than his fair share of that.

Essential Scene: “Who am I?” screams the agent. “Who are any of us, really?” replies Fishburne, launching into a Morpheus-esque meditation on the nature of the self.

But if Fishburne can’t do it…

James Gandolfini as The Treadstone Boss...

Why He’s Perfect: It might seem a slightly odd choice on first look, but bear with us! Basically, Gandolfini really throws us whenever he’s playing a role that doesn’t involve him snarling in a New Jersey accent, and he’d be a wonderfully wrong-footing choice as the quietly-spoken villain of the piece.

Just think of his bizarre performance as Tony’s coma-induced alter-ego in series six of The Sopranos , and you should get the idea.

Essential Scene: Gandolfini treats a bungling 🍎subordinate to a withering put-down, rather than a fist to the solar plexus.

Tahar Rahim as The Assassin...

Why He’s Perfect: Bourne has traditionally had at least one skilled killer on his tail at any given time, and we don’t see why his successor should get special treatment. A Prophet ’s Tahar Rahim is our first choice, a striking, brooding screen presence who showed in the French prison saga that he’s not afraid to kill with his bare hands.

Well maybe a little afraid at first, but he eases his way into it doesn’t he?

Essential Scene: The free-running scene in Ultimatum was one of the most heart-pounding action sequences we’ve ever seen. More free-running please!

But if Rahim can’t do it…

Michael Fassbender as The Assassin...

Why He’s Perfect: We could have picked him as an alternative choice for the Bourne role, but on reflection, we’d rather have him as a charming but deadly villain. On occasion, the hitmen in the Bourne saga have been rather charmless ciphers. Why shouldn’t our hero’s nemesis have a bit of charisma about him this time around?

Essential Scene: The revelation that Fassbender is an old Treadstone classmate of our hero would add some welcome personality to their running battle…

But if Fassbender can’t do it…

Idris Elba as The Assassin...

Why He’s Perfect: Okay, so the BBC’s Luther might have been a bit silly in places, but one thing it did do was reinforce our impression of Idris Elba as a veritable force of nature. If the man was out to kill you, you’d know about it.

We can see him playing the hitman who just keeps on coming, no matter how many times you try to swat him with the newspaper. With his role in Thor already set to bring him to a wider audience, Elba’s star is very much on the rise…

Essential Scene: His first lines, spoken in an American accent. We know Idris is from Hackney, but we wa𝔍nt💦 Stringer Bell back!