Well this isn’t something cycling fans most likely had on their bingo card. According to Deadline, studios are circling a newly assembled package centered on one of pro cycling’s most infamous athletes. Austin Butler is attached to star as none other than Lance Armstrong in a new feature film. Oscar-winning filmmaker Edward Berger is also attached to direct. The script is being written by King Richard screenwriter Zach Baylin, with Scott Stuber and Nick Nesbit producing alongside Berger. Josh Glick, Zac Frognowski, and Baylin will serve as executive producers.
Bidding war
The project has apparently quickly become one of the most aggressively pursued projects in La La Land, with multiple major studios said to be in the mix.
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Armstrong’s life has long drawn Hollywood interest for its…erm, extremes. If you just landed from Jupiter and hadn’t heard about the American, here’s a quick summary. After surviving testicular cancer, he returned to professional cycling and rose to unprecedented dominance, winning seven consecutive Tour de France titles. That legacy ultimately collapsed in spectacular fashion back in 2012 when Armstrong admitted to years of systematic doping following prolonged and public denials.
Armstrong onboard
Although the scandal was previously dramatized in 2015’s The Program, this marks the first time Armstrong has granted life rights for a feature film. Stuber made it clear early on that the project would only move forward with no restrictions on the story, a condition the Texan ultimately accepted after extensive discussions. Although banned for life from professional cycling, the American has remained active in the sport, largely through his popular podcast, The Move.
According to Deadline, the film is being positioned as a “character study.” Baylin has conducted a whole bunch of research, speaking with Armstrong himself as well as several other folks associated with him. (Who he spoke with wasn’t specified, but you can probably guess several of the people.) Although it’s unclear what more information could be shown in the film, since there have already been several documentaries about Armstrong, books galore, and approximately eight billion articles.
For Butler, fresh off his Oscar-nominated run as Elvis Presley, the role represents another, well…bold transformation. At least he doesn’t have to sing. (There’s a joke there about Armstrong’s former teammates, but we won’t go there.)
And before you run to the comments to say, “nobody cares about this cheat,” it seems people still do, for good or for bad.