First trailer for Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit

The first trailer for 'Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit' shows us a glimpse of the reluctant hero of Brit director and career thesp Kenneth Branagh's new thriller.

Starring Chris Pine as Ryan, it's back to the plots of 80s cold war espionage flicks, as analyst Ryan uncovers a Russian plot to destroy the US economy.

First a little background... an original story based on the character created by Tom Clancy – who died earlier this week – it follows Ryan from 9/11, through a tour in Afghanistan to more desk-based job as a financial analyst.

[RIP Jack Ryan author Tom Clancy]

But when he discovers the plot, his handler Harper (Kevin Costner) turns him back to the darkside, becoming a spy to save his own life and that of his somewhat oblivious fiancee, Cathy (Keira Knightley).

And perhaps just because he can, Branagh doubles up as the film's villain Viktor Cherevin.

[Tom Clancy's uneasy relationship with Hollywood]

This looks like pretty breathless stuff, and with Pine now with the chops to carry off leading man roles – thanks to his turn as Kirk in the 'Start Trek' movies – this could be a winner.

We shall see when 'Shadow Recruit' is released in the UK on Boxing Day.