Richard Gere, Topher Grace see 'Double'

Richard Gere and Topher Grace are teaming up for "The Double," a Hyde Park-Imagenation Abu Dhabi spy thriller on which scribe Michael Brandt will make his directorial debut.

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Brandt and his writing partner Derek Haas, who were wrote movies like "Wanted" and "3:10 to Yuma," penned "Double," which begins with a murder of a senator in Washington by a Soviet assassin long thought to be dead. A retired CIA operative (Gere), who spent his career going toe to toe with his Soviet nemeses, is forced to partner with a young FBI agent (Grace) to hunt the killer down.

Brandt said he was a fan of films such as "The Conversation," "Three Days of the Condor" and "No Way Out," and hoped to follow in their tradition.

Production is scheduled for June in Detroit.

The movie is part of Hyde Park and Imagenation's $250 million financing deal to make up to 20 films over a seven years, with additional financing for the production of local language and cross-cultural films. (The two also partnered on Hyde Park Imagenation Singapore.)

Hyde Park chairman Ashok Amritraj and executive vp production Patrick Aiello will produce along with Haas and Industry Entertainment's Andrew Deane. Aiello brought in the project at Hyde Park and will oversee. Hyde Park International, headed by president Mimi Steinbauer, is repping worldwide rights for the film.

Imagenation chairman Mohamed Khalaf Al-Mazrouei and CEO Edward Borgerding will serve as executive producers while COO Stefan Brunner will act as associate producer.

Gere last appeared in "Brooklyn's Finest," and Grace next appears in Twentieth Century Fox's "Predators."

Gere, Grace, Brandt and Haas are repped by WME.