Richard Linklater and Glen Powell are reuniting for a third time. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Powell is set to star as Lou Gehrig in an untitled biopic at Universal Pictures, with Linklater directing and Lorne Michaels producing alongside Erin David via Broadway Video.
Simon Rich is writing the script. Rich also wrote Luca Guadagnino's Artificial. Powell will produce with Dan Cohen through Barnstorm's first-look deal with Universal; Linklater is in talks to produce via Detour Filmproduction.
Gehrig played first base for the New York Yankees and was part of the famous 1927 lineup known as "Murderers' Row," alongside Babe Ruth. He died in 1941 at age 37 after a diagnosis of ALS. The disease now carries his name. Gary Cooper previously played him in the 1942 film The Pride of the Yankees.
This is the third collaboration between Powell and Linklater. The two previously made Everybody Wants Some!!, in which Powell played a college baseball player, and then co-wrote and starred in Netflix's Hit Man. The baseball thread running through their work is notable.
The announcement signals an awards push for Universal. Gehrig is a textbook prestige subject: an athlete of uncommon dignity, a public illness, a farewell address that became part of American mythology. For Powell, it marks a deliberate move toward dramatic leading roles. No production timeline has been set.
