Jeremy Renner is talk of "Town"

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - Jeremy Renner, who has earned raves for his performance in "The Hurt Locker," is in negotiations to join "The Town," a romantic crime thriller from Warner Bros. and Legendary Pictures that Ben Affleck is directing.

Renner joins Affleck, Jon Hamm and Rebecca Hall in the adaptation of Chuck Hogan's novel "Prince of Thieves."

The story follows a bank manager (Hall), the career criminal (Affleck) who stole more than her heart and the dedicated FBI agent (Hamm) trying to bust the crook and his gang.

Renner plays Affleck's doomed best friend, a member of the gang.

The script was worked on by Affleck, Hogan and Peter Craig.

"Town" is the first feature Renner has booked in the wake of "Locker's" critical success. The actor, who starred on ABC's "The Unusuals" in the spring, has appeared in such movies as "The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford," "28 Weeks Later" and "North Country."

(Editing by SheriLinden at Reuters)