Man on Fire is a 1980 thriller novel by the English novelist Philip Nicholson, writing as A. J. Quinnell. The plot features his popular character Marcus Creasy, an American-born former member of the French Foreign Legion and mercenary, in his first appearance. In Italy, wealthy families often hire bodyguards to protect family members from the threat of kidnapping. When Rika Balletto urges her husband Ettore, a wealthy textiles producer living in Milan, to hire a bodyguard for their daughter Pinta, he is doubtful but agrees. After some searching, he finally settles for an American named Creasy. Creasy, once a purposeful and lethal sergeant in the French Foreign Legion and now a mercenary, has become a depressed and burnt-out alcoholic.
Adaptations (3)
Man on Fire has been adapted 3 times, across film and television series, from 1987 to 2026.
Man on Fire1987 · film · 92 min · dir. Élie Chouraqui · IMDb ↗IMDb5.8Creasy, a traumatized ex-CIA agent, gets a job as a bodyguard for Samantha, the twelve-year-old daughter of a wealthy Italian family living in a swanky villa on the shores of Lake Como.
Man on Fire2004 · film · 146 min · dir. Tony Scott · IMDb ↗Jaded ex-CIA operative John Creasy reluctantly accepts a job as the bodyguard for a 10-year-old girl in Mexico City. They clash at first, but eventually bond, and when she's kidnapped he's consumed by fury and will stop at nothing to save her life.
