After Deadline broke the news last week that New Line was in pole position to snap up the package A Chris Farley story The studio made it official today, acquiring the biopic starring Paul Walter Hauser as the legendary comedian. Josh Gad directs, Lorne Michaels and Erin David produce via Broadway Video.
The pitch is based on the book by Farley’s brother Tom Farley Jr. and Tanner Colby and is adapted by Scott Neustadter and Michael H. Weber. This is the second major package Warner Bros. has completed this week with the main studio acquisition Avengelyne which is being developed as a star vehicle for Margot Robbie.
The film would tell the story of one of the greatest comedians of his generation. His start into the second heyday of Saturday Night Live, where Farley would join an all-time ensemble SNL Greats like Adam Sandler, David Spade, Phil Hartman and Rob Schneider. From the beginning, Farley stood out for his amazing skills as a physical comedian, delivering iconic sketches like his “Van Down by the River” performances as motivational speaker Matt Foley or his tryout as a Chippendales dancer with resident Patrick Swayze SNL Tradition.
His success on the show would translate to the big screen, where Farley would soon join other top comedians of the ’90s with hit films like… Tommy Boy, black sheep And Beverly Hills Ninja. After being sober for three years, he relapsed and fell back into drugs and alcohol until he died of an overdose in 1997. His death at the age of 33 shocked not only the industry but all film and comedy lovers and immediately drew comparisons to those around him SNL alum John Belushi, who died in 1982 at the same age.
For Hauser, this is the type of role he has been aiming for, as his career skyrocketed following his spectacular role as Tonya Harding’s bodyguard in 2017 Me, Tonya. Lead roles in “Clint Eastwood” followed. Richard Jewell and finally he became a star Black bird, which earned him an Emmy.
As for Gad, this would be a big step for him as the actor takes his first step into the directing industry, tackling the story of a person who has certainly inspired his own comedic ambitions over the years.
Neustadter and Weber’s long list of credits includes: The Disaster Artist, The Fault in Our Stars And (500 days of summer.
Hauser is repped by CAA, Artists First and Schreck Rose Dapello; Gad is repped by CAA, Sugar 23 and Johnson Shapiro Slewett & Kole; Farley and Colby are represented by Verve; Broadway Video is represented by CAA; and Neustadter and Weber are represented by UTA and Kaplan/Perrone.