If you saw the 2008 documentary MAN ON WIRE, then you know all about Philippe Petit. For those of you who haven't, he's a French high-wire artist famous for his 1974 performance where he did a high-wire walk between the Twin Towers in New York. The documentary about his walk between the towers was very well received by critics, winning numerous awards, including an Oscar for Best Documentary.
Twitch Film has learned Joseph Gordon-Levitt will be playing Philippe Petit in the biopic TO REACH THE CLOUDS, based on Petit's memoir of the same name, with Robert Zemeckis directing. Although mostly known for his Twin Towers walk, Petit also had a few other high profile performances during his career, including a 1986 performance where he re-enacted tightrope walker Charles Blondin's crossing of the Niagara River, and at one point also worked for the Ringling Brothers Circus.
Robert Zemeckis is a great director, and I have a slight man crush on Joseph Gordon-Levitt, so in my opinion this is great news. I do wonder how much of Philippe Petit's Twin Towers walk will be featured in TO REACH THE CLOUDS though, since many people are well aware of those events because of MAN ON WIRE. It'll also be interesting to see how Joseph Gordon-Levitt does with a French accent.
No word on when production will start on TO REACH THE CLOUDS or a release date, but things should start moving quickly with Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Robert Zemeckis onboard.