Captain Phillips scribe Billy Ray is, according to Variety, set to script the recently-announced The Ballad of Richard Jewell, which is set to reunite The Wolf of Wall Street stars Leonardo DiCaprio and Jonah Hill.
The Vanity Fair article “American Nightmare: The Ballad of Richard Jewell” by Marie Brenner will serve as the primary basis for the film, detailing the life of the title character who, in 1996, became both a national hero and, immediately thereafter, a suspect in the Olympic Park bombing.
Hill will play Jewell, whose life is thrown into turmoil following allegations of his involvement in the disaster. DiCaprio, meanwhile, will play his lawyer. Jewell was eventually exonerated, but not at the expense of an investigation that, for months, had the American public believing him a potential terrorist.
DiCaprio is producing through his Appian Way alongside Hill, Jennifer Davisson Killoran and Kevin Misher. Andy Berman will also produce through Misher Films with the project set for distribution through 20th Century Fox.
You can read the full text of “American Nightmare” by clicking here.
(Photo Credit: Ivan Nikolov / WENN.com)
