Hollywood stars Cate Blanchett and Ben Stiller are teaming up to turn the 1960s espionage television series The Champions into a film. In addition to acting, Stiller is directing the upcoming adaptation while Blanchett – an ambassador for the UK/Australia Season – is producing through her company, Dirty Films. Stiller is also producing through his label, Red Hour Productions.
The Champions film will pay homage to the original show from Dennis Spooner, which follows three United Nations agents whose plane crashes into the Himalayas. Upon being rescued by an advanced civilization secretly living in Tibet, they are granted enhanced intellectual and physical abilities. When the agents return to the outside world, they use their new superhuman abilities to become champions of law, order and justice.
Blanchett says: ‘The Champions is a long-forgotten gem that will excite a new generation in the same strange and magnificent way that the original series spoke to us. I’ve long wanted to work with Ben… He is one of the most engaged and versatile directors working today. Anyone who can make both Zoolander and Escape at Dannemora is a creative force to be reckoned with.’
