Bon Jovi is getting the big-screen treatment.
Universal has won a bidding war to back a feature film about the rock band behind hits like “Livin’ on a Prayer,” “You Give Love a Bad Name” and “It’s My Life.”
Cody Brotter, who penned the upcoming crypto thriller “Killing Satoshi,” starring Pete Davidson and Casey Affleck, is writing the screenplay.
A director has not been set, nor has casting for the group’s key members, whose founding members include singer Jon Bon Jovi, keyboardist David Bryan and drummer Tico Torres, all of whom are still with the band, along with guitarist Richie Sambora, who left the group in 2013, and bassist Alec John Such, who departed in 1994 and died in 2022.
Formed in 1983, Bon Jovi has been inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and Songwriters Hall of Fame. It’s unclear what chapter from the band’s history will anchor the movie, and whether it’ll focus on one formative event, à la “Springsteen: Deliver Me From Nowhere,” or if it’ll be more expansive like the Elton John biopic “Rocketman.”
Producers on the Bon Jovi movie include Kevin J. Walsh and Gotham Chopra of Religion of Sports. Universal’s director of production development Jacqueline Garell will oversee the project for the studio.
Music-centric biopics have been hugely popular at the box office, with recent hits including “Bohemian Rhapsody,” “Elvis” and “Bob Marley: One Love.” Not every movie that’s inspired by musicians has connected, with “Springsteen: Deliver Me From Nowhere” and the Amy Winehouse biopic “Back to Black” among major flops. Universal has international rights to the upcoming “Michael” film about Michael Jackson, which is set to release in April. Meanwhile, Sam Mendes is currently working on four interconnected “Beatles” movies at Sony.