Last Summer, we'd learned that actors Kevin Costner and Woody Harrelson were in talks to star in Netflix's Bonnie & Clyde-hunting lawmen feature. And now, after much time has passed, the streaming giant has come forward to announce that both gentlemen are confirmed to board the project that at one time had Paul Newman and Robert Redford poised to star.
Set in the Depression Era, HIGHWAYMAN tells the story of two veteran Texas Rangers who ended the violent series of robberies perpetrated by the notorious outlaws, Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow. After much haggling, Netflix is currently hard at work securing the project from Universal Pictures, which was its original home for the past four years. John Lee Hancock (THE FOUNDER, THE BLIND SIDE) will direct in addition to rewriting the John Fusco-penned script, while Casey Silver will produce.
Starring alongside Costner and Harrelson will be Kathy Bates (MISERY, AMERICAN HORROR STORY), John Carroll Lynch (THE FOUNDER), Kim Dickens (GONE GIRL, THE WALKING DEAD), Thomas Mann (ME AND EARL AND THE DYING GIRL), and William Sadler (THE SHAWSHANK REDEMPTION).
Once in front of the cameras, Costner will play lawman Frank Hamer while Harrelson will fill the boots of Manny Gault, another officer of high regard. Both men were retired from the Rangers once Bonnie & Clyde began their killing spree, but had been commissioned as a special unit, as per the instruction of several banks whose goal it was to assemble a posse of officials who could help put an end to the criminal duo's reign of terror. By the time their bloody spree came to stunning close, Bonnie & Clyde had killed a total of 13 cops as well as several bystanders. HIGHWAYMAN will be told from the perspective of the posse led by Hamer, a seasoned veteran of the force who in the past survived 100 gunfights and killed 53 people.
It's been ages since a proper Bonnie & Clyde-related film has held viewers at gunpoint, and I'm of the mind that both Costner and Harrelson will make for a formidable pair in the hunt for one of history's most infamous criminal couples. The question now is: Who will go on to play the heist-hungry pair in the film? Let us know your casting suggestions for Bonnie & Clyde below.