Jennifer Lawrence To Star In Billionaire Biopic Directed By Adam McKay

After directing Brad Pitt, Steve Carell, Ryan Gosling, and Christian Bale to awards season success both critically and commercially (and walking home with an Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay) in “The Big Short,” Adam McKay made Hollywood sit up and take notice that there was much more to him than wacky hijinks with Will Ferrell. And true to that form, he’s lining up a new project with one of the biggest stars on the planet.

Jennifer Lawrence will star in a currently untitled film about Elizabeth Holmes (current net worth approximately $3.6 billion). So what makes her story so interesting? At age 32, she’s one of the youngest billionaires in the world, and she rose to fame and fortune as the founder of the blood-testing company Theranos. Cool beans, until the company recently came under criminal investigation for misleading investors, with Holmes’ net worth dropping as a result. So, sort of like a reverse “Joy” mixed with a little “The Big Short“? In very broad terms, kinda sounds like it.

McKay will write the script for this one as well, but as for when it might roll, it seems pretty early days at the moment, and a studio still needs to be found. Lawrence will shoot Darren Aronofsky‘s mysterious indie movie this year, and has “Passengers” with Chris Pratt coming in December. McKay just lined up a pilot at HBO, and is also attached to direct the comic book movie “Irredeemable.” [Variety]