Tom Clancy dies: Tom Selleck says writer sought ‘Magnum, P.I.’ film

Late author Tom Clancy was a big fan of the 1980s detective show “Magnum, P.I.” and wanted to make a movie with star Tom Selleck.

Selleck says that he and Clancy met in the 1990s about doing a feature adaptation of the series about a handsome private eye in Hawaii, which ran on CBS from 1980 to 1988.

“In the early ‘90s, [Clancy had] done a couple of wildly successful movie adaptations of his books,” Selleck told Yahoo! TV, referring to such films as “The Hunt for Red October.” The interview was conducted prior to the announcement Wednesday of Clancy’s death from an undisclosed cause.

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“We got together, and I went to Universal, and I said, ‘It’s time we could do a series of feature films.’ They were very interested, and I had Tom, who wanted to do the story, and I had this package put together, but Universal’s the only studio that could make it, and they went through three ownership changes in the ‘90s, and I think that was the real window for ‘Magnum.’”

“Magnum,” which was a top-rated show early in its run, was produced by Universal Television, which is today part of the NBCUniversal family controlled by cable giant Comcast.

The project may yet happen, given Hollywood’s penchant for reviving old properties. But Selleck is resigned to not playing the lead. “If they did a ‘Magnum’ movie, I think it’s been pretty clear — because I’ve heard rumors there were scripts and all — I don’t think they see me doing it.”

Now 68, Selleck stars in “Blue Bloods” on CBS.

What do you think of a “Magnum” movie? Would you go see it?

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