A film about the origins of the Madden NFL video game series and John Madden's role in it is in the works from Oscar-nominated director David O. Russell and Will Ferrell is in talks to join the project.
Deadline reported that Ferrell is in “early talks” to star as the late John Madden in the upcoming film conveniently titled Madden. Cambron Clark (Dinosaurs of the Jurassic World), who was named to The Black List last year, penned the script for the film.
According to Deadline's report, Madden follows “the legendarily fiery coach after his exit from the NFL, as he teams with Electronic Arts to become the unlikely co-creator of a pioneering video game franchise.”
Will Ferrell is a comedy icon for roles in the likes of Elf and the Anchorman series, but his most recent roles came in two Apple TV+ projects, The Shrink Next Door (a drama with Paul Rudd) and Spirited (a holiday film with Ryan Reynolds). He'll also appear in Greta Gerwig's star-studded ensemble film Barbie as the Mattel CEO and will lead an A-list comedy, Strays. In Strays, Ferrell voices Reggie — a dog who's abandoned by his owner. Upon coming to this realization, Reggie teams up with other strays to get revenge. Jamie Foxx, Sofia Vergara, Isla Fisher, Will Forte, Josh Gad, and more star in the R-rated comedy.
David O. Russell, while a problematic figure in Hollywood, is an acclaimed director. His films The Fighter, Silver Linings Playbook (a football-related film), and American Hustle all received Academy Award nominations. However, Russell's last film, Amsterdam, was a star-studded affair with the likes of Christian Bale, Margot Robie, John David Washington, Anya Taylor-Joy, Robert De Niro, heck, even Taylor Swift was in it, was a flop at the box office — grossing just $31 million on a reported budget of $80 million. Will a John Madden film turn it around? Even if the film is of higher quality than the recent video games, it's not guaranteed to get Russell's career back on track.
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