EXCLUSIVE: After collaborating on one of the great TV characters of the 21st Century,
Matthew McConaughey and
True Detective creator
Nic Pizzolatto have set their sights on another classic character to tackle. Sources tell Deadline, McConaughey is in talks to star in
Skydance’s feature film based on the iconic character
Mike Hammer from a script by Pizzolatto.
Skydance acquired the rights to Mickey Spillane’s and Max Allan Collins’ Mike Hammer franchise with plans to develop and produce the bestselling book series into a feature film. Skydance’s David Ellison, Dana Goldberg, Don Granger will produce along with Entertainment 360’s Guymon Casady. Benjamin Forkner, and Ken F. Levin will also produce. Max Allan Collins will executive produce with Jane Spillane serving as co-producer. Carin Sage will oversee the project for Skydance.
Hammer is the protagonist of a series of hardboiled detective novels, starting with
I, the Jury published in 1947, becoming one of the most popular figures of the genre.
With more than 250 million copies of Mike Hammer books sold globally, it is often recognized as the most popular American mystery/thriller series of all time. Hammer is credited with inspiring numerous other characters including Dirty Harry, Jack Reacher and James Bond (who Ian Fleming famously referred to as “the British answer to Mike Hammer”).
deadline.com
