Paramount Pictures has wasted no time finding a new director for its next film featuring Tom Clancy's Jack Ryan character. Just a week after Jack Bender withdrew from the project because of other commitments, Variety reports that Thor director Kenneth Branagh could replace him.

Branagh and the studio are still working out the details, but the original plan was for filming to start on the spy thriller after latest Jack Ryan actor Chris Pine wraps Star Trek 2.

Alec Baldwin first played the character in 1990's The Hunter for Red October, followed by Harrison Ford in 1992's Patriot Games and 1994's Clear and Present Danger. The last and most recent installment in the Ryan saga came with 2002's The Sum of All Fears, starring Ben Affleck.