The Greatest Beer Run Ever movie with Efron, Crowe headed to Apple

Last Updated on July 30, 2021

It would seem that Apple Studios is thirsty for Oscar-winning director Peter Farrelly's next feature, The Greatest Beer Run Ever. The studio is looking to finance the project, which has Zac Efron (The Disaster Artist, The Greatest Showman) and Russell Crowe (Unhinged, Gladiator) in talks to star. If that's not enough star power to make you pull up a chair, Bill Murray is also being eyed for a supporting role.

Based on the bestselling book The Greatest Beer Run Ever: A Memoir of Friendship, Loyalty and War by Chick Donahue and J.T. Malloy, Beer Run tells Donohue’s story of leaving New York in 1967 to bring beer to his childhood buddies in the Army — while they are fighting in Vietnam. Per Deadline's description, Donohue took a good idea to the extreme, hitching a ride on a Merchant Marine ship, then carrying the beer through the jungle as he tried to track down his three friends. Dressed in shorts and Hawaiian shirts, he was mistaken for CIA, which made his effort a bit easier. Finally, when he completed his beer run, the Tet Offensive happened. Efron will play Donohue. The hope is to start production in August, probably in New Zealand or Australia.

Farrelly is co-writing the script with Brian Currie and Pete Jones. Meanwhile, Andrew Muscato and Skydance’s David Ellison, Dana Goldberg, and Don Granger will produce. Once the film is complete, it will be released as an Apple Original Films venture.

With cameras currently rolling for Season 2 of Down to Earth for Netflix, Efron will soon move onto a variety of projects, including Maurice Marable's remake of Three Men and a Baby, Glenn Ficarra and John Requa's King of the Jungle, as well as the remake of Stephen King's Firestarter.

As for Crowe, he's recently completed work on The Georgetown Project, which also stars Sam Worthington, Samantha Mathis, David Hyde Pierce, and more. The story focuses on a troubled actor who begins to unravel while shooting a horror film. Currently, Crowe is voicing the character Kor the Prophet for ARK: The Animated Series. Based on the popular video game franchise of the same name, Crowe is joined by Gerard Butler, Vin Diesel, Devery Jacobs, Cissy Jones, Malcolm McDowell, and many more for the adaptation.