Will Rene Russo Appear in Thomas Crown Affair Sequal?

Recent reports tells that Rene Russo will not appear as Pierce Brosnan's opposite in the upcoming Thomas Crown Affair 2, which starts shooting in January.

Pierce Brosnan, who will also be producing this film about a bored-to-death Multi-Millionaire (or was it Billionaire) who has a knack for thievery, will opposite a love interest that has yet to be cast. However, we do know the name of this character, which is Nadia Badri.

The original reports of this movie told us that Thomas Crown Sequal was going to be named "The Topkapi Affair", however we have been told that this name has been dropped in favor of the more original "Thomas Crown Affair 2".

Paul Verhoeven, best known for directing Basic Instinct, will be directing this movie.

In any event, I'm sad to see that Rene Russo won't be back for this... but I am looking forward to this sequel.