From Hawkeye to heavyweight, Avengers and Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation star Jeremy Renner is reportedly circling the title role in a Rocky Marciano boxing drama.
Word comes by way of Deadline, reporting that Renner is in line to lead the feature – going under the official name of Undefeated: The Rocky Marciano Story – about the famed heavyweight boxer who ploughed his way through a staggering 49 defeats without losing a single fight. He is, as the title suggests, the only fighter in the division to retire from the sport undefeated, which ought to make for a meaty role for Renner to assume.
With a screenplay penned by Samuel Franco and Evan Kilgore, the pair best known for their blacklist pitch Mayday 109, the Rocky Marciano biopic would delve into the untold story of the legendary boxer – one which has never hit the silver screen before. Prior to a tragic plane accident that killed him in 1969, Marciano got his start in boxing as a wide-eyed amateur, fighting his way past the likes of Jersey Joe Walcott, Roland La Starza, Ezzard Charles (twice), Don Cockell, and Archie Moore to become one of the most revered sportsman in history.
Morris S. Levy is on board to produce and should this deal fall into place, Renner will be one of a number of actors stepping into the ring over the next couple of years. After Michael B. Jordan and Jake Gyllenhaal donned the boxing gloves in 2015, we’ll soon see Whiplash breakout Miles Teller in Bleed for This.
No word yet on a director for Undefeated: The Rocky Marciano Story, though Jeremy Renner will next be seen lining up alongside Earth’s Mightiest Heroes in Captain America: Civil War.
