Steven Spielberg developing movie based on Steve McQueen’s Bullitt

Steve McQueen’s Bullitt was one of the biggest films of the ’60s and its signature car chase sequence is still regarded as one of the most influential of all-time; plus, it’s hard to beat Steve McQueen, the King of Cool himself, at the absolute height of his career. Although McQueen died more than forty years ago, Deadline has reported that Frank Bullitt might be making a comeback as Steven Spielberg is looking to direct a new Bullitt movie.

Steven Spielberg is slated to direct the new Bullitt movie as well as produce it. Josh Singer is currently on board to write the script but deals are still being finalized so it’s unlikely that this would be Spielberg’s next project. Based on Mute Witness by Robert L. Fish, the original film starred Steve McQueen as a no-nonsense San Francisco cop who becomes determined to track down the underworld kingpin who killed the witness in his protection. This new project will not be a remake of the 1968 film but will tell an original story with the Frank Bullitt character at its center. Steve McQueen’s children, Chad and Molly McQueen, will executive produce the project.

Deadline’s insiders say that Steven Spielberg has been considering directing a film based on the Frank Bullitt character for quite some time and actually came close to following up West Side Story with the project, but negotiations with Steve McQueen’s estate took longer than expected, so he decided to move forward with The Fabelmans while he waited.

The Fabelmans might just be Steven Spielberg’s most personal film to date as it’s been described as a semi-autobiographical project drawing from Spielberg’s time growing up in Arizona. The film stars Michelle Williams and Paul Dano as characters influenced by Spielberg’s own parents, with Seth Rogen playing a role based on Spielberg’s uncle, and newcomer Gabriel LaBelle playing a young aspiring filmmaker based on Spielberg himself. Julia Butters, Judd Hirsch, Sam Rechner, Oakes Fegley, Chloe East, Julia Butters, Jeannie Berlin, Robin Bartlett, Jonathan Hadary, and Isabelle Kusman will also appear in The Fabelmans. Steven Spielberg is currently in post-production on The Fabelmans which will be released by Universal Pictures on November 23, 2022.