Fox/Disney’s upcoming real-life drama The Ballad Of Richard Jewell have spoken with Clint Eastwood about possibly heading the project according to Deadline.
The project has had several casting stages, having approached Leonardo DiCaprio and Jonah Hill in key roles, although it is expected that if Eastwood signs on he will reassess the entire production.
From Deadline:
The story will focus on Richard Jewell, a police officer and security guard “whose life was turned upside down in a moment after it was leaked by law enforcement to a reporter that Jewell was a possible suspect in the Olympic Park bombing during the 1996 Atlanta Olympics. From the moment he was outed by an article written by an overzealous reporter at the Atlanta Journal Constitution, Jewell went from hero to one of the most hated men in America.”
Jewell was eventually exonerated of all charges and died in 2007.
The Ballad of Richard Jewell has been scripted by Billy Ray (Captain Phillips).