Cocaine Bear: Elizabeth Banks to Direct Universal’s Thriller with Lord Miller Producing

March 9, 2021

Elizabeth Banks is set to direct the upcoming movie Cocaine Bear for Universal Pictures. Oscar-winning duo Phil Lord and Chris Miller (Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, The Last Man on Earth, The Lego Movie) will produce for Lord Miller along with Banks and Max Handelman, who will produce via their Brownstone Productions banner. The project is being described as a character-driven thriller inspired by true events that took place in Kentucky in 1985 (via Deadline).

Emmy-nominated Banks (Modern Family, 30 Rock) recently directed 2019’s Charlie’s Angels and Pitch Perfect 2 in 2015. She most recently starred in the limited series Mrs. America alongside Cate Blanchett, Rose Byrne, and Uzo Aduba.

Cocaine Bear is written by Jimmy Warden and will also be produced by Aditya Sood along with Brian Duffield. Executive Vice President of Production Matt Reilly and Creative Executive Christine Sun will oversee Cocaine Bear on behalf of Universal Pictures.

Producers are reportedly expecting to get the project into production by this summer.

Banks also recently teamed up with the studio along with producer Marc Platt to develop and produce the live-action hybrid movie adaptation of The Magic School Bus. Banks will portray Ms. Frizzle in the project.

(Photo by Allen Berezovsky/Getty Images)