Peter Facinelli only regrets that he has but one movie to make about Nathan Hale

The American Revolutionary War—remembered fondly by the British as “our first fight”—is loaded with legendary figures of super-human bravery. The country was built on the backs of guys like Thomas Jefferson and George Washington, so we want history to remember them as the baddest dudes on the planet, because, honestly, we don’t have much else going for us.

One such figure is Nathan Hale, an American spy who was executed by the British. He’s not famous for his intelligence-gathering, though, he’s famous because his last words were totally awesome: “I only regret that I have but one life to give for my country.” Granted, only the British soldiers who executed him were there to hear his last words, so there’s a chance they were exaggerated a bit by the Americans that had everything to gain from making him sound like a badass, but America won the war so let’s just accept it and move on.

Now that the history lesson is over, please pass your essays to the front and make note of the fact that—according to Variety—A7SLE Films, the production company co-owned by actor Peter Facinelli, has picked up the rights to make a movie about Nathan Hale. Based on Nathan Hale: The Life and Death of America’s First Spy, a non-fiction book by M. William Phelps, Facinelli’s film will tell the story of how a 21-year-old kid managed to become one of the most iconic figures of the American Revolution. Of course, we just told you how it happened, but we imagine the movie version will have the advantage of casting someone young and handsome to play Hale. Maybe someone who was in Twilight? Too bad A7SLE Films doesn’t have easy access to someone like that. Oh well.