The FIFA scandals that have been rocking the world of football (or soccer, if you are from America) have been the subject of major news outlets for weeks now. The abysmal failure of the FIFA-funded biopic UNITED PASSIONS didn't helm matters. But, a much less flattering project about the seedy underbelly of FIFA will be coming from Warner Bros and producers Ben Affleck and Matt Damon.
WARRIOR director Gavin O'Connor recently wrapped the Ben Affleck thriller THE ACCOUNTANT and will next direct HOUSES OF DECEIT, based on the book of the same name. The film will be written by Anthony Tambakis who wrote WARRIOR as well as O'Connor's last film, the Natalie Portman western JANE GOT A GUN.
The film will focus on Chuck Blazer, the American FIFA executive who served as an informant for the investigation that led to the downfall of the top brass at the soccer institution.
His stature as one of soccer’s top dogs began to unravel when in the 2010s, allegations of bribery began to surface as well as massive tax evasion. Even as he admitted to conspiring to accept bribes with other FIFA executives, he was also informing for the FBI. And he was also a deemed a cooperating witness in May’s arrests of FIFA executives, an event that rocked soccer worldwide and exposed its rotten core.
Timely projects like this tend to serve studios well, especially around awards season. This project has the potential to be another THE SOCIAL NETWORK or even the upcoming Lance Armstrong biopic THE PROGRAM. It is unclear whether Damon or Affleck will appear in the film but with both of their schedules full it seems unlikely.
No matter how this film develops, there is no way it can be as bad as UNITED PASSIONS, right?