Bradley Cooper is set to star in Steven Spielberg’s upcoming film, an original feature based on the character of Frank Bullitt, the no-nonsense San Francisco cop played by Steve McQueen in the 1968 action-thriller “Bullitt.”
Josh Singer (“The Post,” “Spotlight”) is writing the screenplay for the film, which is currently in development at Warner Bros. Though plot details haven’t been revealed, the forthcoming production is expected to follow Bullitt on an entirely different exploit than the McQueen original’s.
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Warner Bros. released the original “Bullitt,” which was directed by Peter Yates and based on the 1963 novel “Mute Witness.” In what became McQueen’s most notable role, he portrayed a detective who investigates the death of a mob informant he was hired to protect. The movie is famous for including one of the most iconic and exciting car chases in cinema history with McQueen doing his own stunts in a modified Ford Mustang. “Bullitt” became a critical and commercial smash, generating $42 million on a $4 million budget and winning one Oscar.
Cooper will produce the still-untitled movie with Spielberg and Kristie Macosko Krieger, marking their second collaboration following the upcoming Leonard Bernstein biopic “Maestro.” McQueen’s son Chad McQueen and granddaughter Molly McQueen will executive produce.
Spielberg’s latest movie “The Fabelmans,” a semi-autobiographical story about growing up as a film lover, opened in theaters earlier in November. Michelle Williams, Paul Dano, Seth Rogen and Gabriel LaBelle (as Spielberg’s screen surrogate) star in the movie, which looks to be a major awards player after taking home the people’s choice award at the Toronto International Film Festival.
Cooper is currently in post-production on the highly anticipated film “Maestro,” which he stars in, co-writes, directs and produces. Netflix is releasing the musical drama in 2023. Spielberg, who had been developing “Maestro” for years, encouraged Cooper to direct and star in the film after watching Cooper’s directorial debut “A Star Is Born.”
Deadline Hollywood first reported the news of Cooper’s casting.
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