Rejoice Michael Mann fans! The cooler-than-cool maestro behind Thief, Miami Vice, Heat, and so many more is finally back in action after a few years licking his wounds following the failure of Blackhat. Not only is his series, Tokyo Vice, set to hit HBO Max in April, while his Heat sequel/prequel novel hits bookstores this summer, but Michael Mann is also gearing up to finally shoot his dream project, Ferrari, with Adam Driver to play the titular role.
For those not in the know, Mann’s been trying to get a biopic of Enzo Ferrari off the ground for years. Initially Hugh Jackman was set to star, but Deadline is reporting that Adam Driver, in a genius bit of casting, is now set to play the lead, with Penelope Cruz as his wife Laura and Shailene Woodley as his mistress Lina Lardi. While I’m not super sold on Woodley as Lardi, in Mann, I trust, and I’m sure she’ll be great.
According to Deadline, the pic, which will be released by STX stateside, “is set during the summer of 1957. Ex-racecar driver Ferrari, is in crisis. Bankruptcy stalks the company he and his wife, Laura, built from nothing ten years earlier. Their tempestuous marriage struggles with the mourning for one son and the acknowledgement of another. He decides to counter his losses by rolling the dice on one race – 1,000 miles across Italy, the iconic Mille Miglia.”
The movie was written by Troy Kennedy Martin (Edge of Darkness, the original Italian Job), who actually died thirteen years ago, which tells you how long this movie has been in the works. There is no news yet on when this starts filming, but hopefully, it will happen soon as this project has fallen apart a few times in the past. It’s a big gamble, but hey, I’ll always bet on my main man Mann!
Are you excited for Michael Mann’s Ferrari?