Actor Bradley Cooper is at the front of the pack to play Lance Armstrong in a planned biopic.
Cooper previously expressed interest in playing disgraced former cyclist and Tour de France legend Lance Armstrong, and apparently, that’s all it took to put him on the short-list.
MSN reports that Paramount Pictures and Bad Robot (J.J. Abrams’ company) are making a biopic about the fallen icon, and that Cooper is in talks to cinch the lead role. Abrams confirmed that he is indeed talking with Cooper for the role.
ET ‘s Christina McLarty asked Abrams about Cooper’s interest in playing the role backstage at the Producers Guild Awards in Los Angeles. He replied, “[Cooper] sent me an email and we’ve been talking.”
Cooper made his interest known to BBC News on January 22, saying, “I would be interested in [playing Armstrong]. I think he’s fascinating. What a fascinating character.”
Paramount and Bad Robot secured the rights to Cycle of Lies: The Fall of Lance Armstrong , a book proposal written by Juliet Macur, in mid-January almost immediately after Armstrong admitted publicly to doping during all seven of his Tour de France wins. Macur is a sports reporter from The New York Times , and has covered Armstrong over the span of a decade, chronicling his struggle with cancer, years of doping allegations, and the lawsuits that followed.
Who do you think should play Lance Armstrong in the upcoming biopic? Is Bradley Cooper the right guy for the gig, or is there another actor who should fill the disgraced cyclist’s shoes?