George Clooney Will NOT Star in Steven Soderbergh’s THE MAN FROM U.N.C.L.E.

Last November, we reported that George Clooney was in talks to reunite with director Steven Soderbergh (Clooney’s Oceans films and Out of Sight) to star in his adaptation of the 1960′s spy series The Man from U.N.C.L.E.. Now, with the film set to begin lensing for Warner Bros. in February 2012, it appears that Clooney has left the project. News of the actor’s apparent departure comes courtesy of Deadline which seems confident in its report in spite of the fact that they can’t yet pin down a reason for his withdrawal.

It’s believed that Warner Bros. is still set on adhering to The Man from U.N.C.L.E.‘s February 2012 start date. That said, the “A-List” sized hole Clooney leaves behind will not be easily filled. Next up for Soderbergh is his thriller Contagion starring Matt Damon, Kate Winslet, Jude Law, and Marion Cotillard. That film opens on September 9th. Clooney can next be seen in his directorial effort The Ides of March and writer/director Alexander Paynes’s (Sideways) The Descendants which open on October 7th and November 23rd respectively.