While Australian director Baz Luhrmann has kept busy post-Gatsby — with several projects on the horizon including a TV drama about the nascent days of hip-hop and a big screen adaptation of Kung Fu — he’s reportedly made room for one more, a new biopic chronicling the life of Elvis.
As The Wrap reports, Luhrman is currently in talks with Warner Bros to direct a new Elvis Presley biopic, penned by Fifty Shades of Grey scribe Kelly Marcel. The script will not be based on any source material and Warner has secured the rights to the entirety of The King’s extensive catalog.
It is presently unclear if the film will chronicle the rock and roll icon’s life from childhood a la Johnny Cash in Walk the Line or if it will aim to focus on a specific period in the singer’s life, as the oft-troubled forthcoming Freddie Mercury biopic starring Skyfall‘s Ben Whishaw is said to be doing.
On the production side of things, Gail Berman (Buffy the Vampire Slayer) will produce for Tecumseh Productions, with Andrew Mittman of Whalerock Industries in the executive producer’s chair. Warner Bros executive Courtenay Valenti will oversee the project on behalf of the studio.
Luhrman has reportedly been in negotiations for several weeks and is expected to bring spouse and Oscar winner Catherine Martin on board as costume designer and possibly production designer if the deal closes. There is no word yet on whether anyone is being eyed to portray Presley on screen.
Watch: A History of On-Screen Elvis Portrayals
