Will Ferrell may star as John Madden in new Madden NFL movie
Will Ferrell may be starring as John Madden in Amazon and MGM’s Madden NFL movie chronicling the rise of the sports game franchise, a new report from Deadline says. The report says Ferrell is “circling” the role and that the project is a theatrical feature film with David O. Russell as director.
Russell previously directed Amsterdam and American Hustle, the latter of which earned 10 Oscar nominations.
Deadline says the Madden movie comes from a Black List script. The Black List is a repository of sorts where screenwriters leave their work for producers and directors to, hopefully, pick up. Russell was in the process of rewriting parts of the script with the WGA writers’ strike began, and work has since stalled on the project.
The film will reportedly cover Madden’s life after he won the Super Bowl, as he struggled to find a new and fulfilling direction. It’ll emphasize his friendship with Oakland Raiders owner Al Davis and how Madden’s work as a commentator helped redefine both American football and the video game landscape when Madden NFL first launched with EA Sports – even though Madden himself never actually played a video game, even the ones with his name on it.
More details will likely follow if and when the writers’ strike comes to an end.
