Fresh off his Oscar win for Oppenheimer, Deadline reports that Cillian Murphy has set up one of his next projects, a feature adaptation of Blood Runs Coal: The Yablonski Murders and the Battle for the United Mine Workers of America by Mark A. Bradley.
Blood Runs Coal takes place in the late 1960s and will feature Cillian Murphy playing Chip Yablonski, a labor attorney who fights to get justice for his father, Jock Yablonski. The elder Yablonski was a second-generation coal miner and activist who fought for better working conditions and health benefits for his fellow miners. However, he butted heads with union president Tony Boyle, and when Yablonski decided to run against him, Boyle used embezzled union funds to order the murder of his opponent. Yablonski was killed, along with his wife and daughter, with Chip Yablonski barely escaping the same fate as he had left the house the day prior. Jez Butterworth will pen the script for Blood Runs Coal with John-Henry Butterworth
In addition to Best Actor for Cillian Murphy, Oppenheimer took home seven Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Supporting Actor, Best Cinematography, Best Film Editing, and Best Original Score.
Murphy has plenty of projects on his slate, including Small Things Like These, a historical drama in which he plays a devoted father and coal merchant who discovers startling secrets kept by the convent in his town, along with some shocking truths of his own. The film made its debut at the Berlin International Film Festival last month. He will also star in Steve for Netflix as a headteacher of a last-chance reform school who struggles to keep his students in line, while also grappling with his spiraling mental health. It’s also expected that he will reprise his role of Thomas Shelby in the upcoming Peaky Blinders movie.
There’s also a chance Murphy might appear in the long-awaited 28 Days Later sequel, 28 Years Later. While he’s onboard the project as an executive producer, it hasn’t been revealed if he’ll make an appearance in the film as well. “It’s for [Danny Boyle and Alex Garland] to speak about, I suppose, but I think it’s been brewing for a while,” Murphy said last month. “The first movie was so important for me as an actor. I love working with those guys. Alex has an idea, and Danny directing is just huge. Watch this space.“