He may only have been killed 12 hours or more ago but the team behind THE HURT LOCKER, Kathyrn Bigelow and Mark Boal are developing a film around the assassination of public enemy No 1, Osama Bin Laden.
Bigelow and Boal have, reportedly, been searching for project similar to that of their Oscar winning HURT LOCKER in the sense that it is a real life war type film and they seem to have found it with the working title being KILL BIN LADEN. Now it appears more likely that the film is based on the memiors of Dalton Fury (real name Thomas Greer) of the same title which recounts the battle of Tora Bora, a mission which happened after the events of 9/11 in Afghanistan.
Of course this idea may change with the actual assassination of Bin Laden. This is what the Hollywood Reporter has to say on the subject:
The real-world development could impact the project in several possible ways: The movie could stay more or less the same, gaining momentum as Sunday’s events give its subject matter added weight, context and timeliness. Or perhaps the project will do a 180-degree turn, with a new story line and focus. We can’t imagine the events surrounding Bin Laden’s ultimate killing not being incorporated into the script in some fashion.
Or, of course, Bigelow could lose interest in the subject matter altogether, especially given all the other Bin Laden projects that will likely be fast-tracked to capitalize on the intense worldwide interest in this subject. Paramount in 2006 optioned Jawbreaker, a book written by intelligence operative Gary Bernsten, about a 2001 hunt for Bin Laden during the opening stages of the war in Afghanistan. The next few weeks will likely see a ton of new Bin Laden projects, especially as the details of the U.S. mission to kill him become known.
And here’s where the project is in development:
We hear Bigelow and Boal are digesting the news and will spend the week figuring out their next move. We can be sure that Boal will be using his extensive intelligence connections to get the inside dope on the mission. And if they move forward, the final film will no doubt be authentic and timely.
The production at one point looked to have Michael Fassbender attached but now seems to be a vehicle for the uber-popular Joel Edgerton (ANIMAL KINGDOM). But we will just have to see over the coming week or so what Bigelow decides.
