David O. Russell made his comeback last year with “Amsterdam,” his first movie since 2015’s “Joy.” But neither critics nor audiences took to the period ensemble film that much. Maybe Russell will fare better in one of his two upcoming projects. First, there’s “Super Toys” with Sacha Baron Cohen and Keke Palmer. And now Deadline reports that Russell also has, “Madden,” about NFL legend John Madden, in the works with Amazon/MGM, with Will Ferrell in talks to star.
READ MORE: ‘Super Toys’: Keke Palmer & Sacha Baron Cohen Team Up For David O. Russell’s Next Movie
Will Ferrell in a sports movie? Well, don’t expect “Madden” to be like “Talladega Nights: The Ballad Of Ricky Bobby” or “Blades Of Glory.” Instead, “Madden” focuses on the NFL coach’s exit from the league and subsequent partnership with Electronic Arts to make the pioneering “Madden NFL” video game franchise. So, a dramedy kind of in the vein of “Tetris” or something, and not really a sports movie. Cambron Clark pens the script for “Madden,” a script apparently so good it landed on it landed on The Black List last year. Meanwhile, Todd Black produces the project through Escape Artists for Amazon/MGM.
“Madden” may be yet another recent role for Ferrell, who clicking off several big roles lately. He’s recently starred in two things for Apple TV+: the Christmas musical comedy “Spirited” and the limited series “The Shrink Next Door.” Up next, he’ll play the Mattel CEO in Greta Gerwig‘s “Barbie,” in theaters July 21. After that, a voice role for Ferrell as a foul-mouthed Border Terrier in Universal‘s “Strays.” Ferrell will also star alongside Reese Witherspoon in another Amazon project for Prime Video, the comedy “You’re Cordially Invited.”
As stated earlier, no one cared about Russell’s “Amsterdam” at all, which isn’t surprising given the bloated script and unfamiliar “between two world wars” backdrop. But it’s by no means a poor film, and if anything, it got unfairly maligned by critics due to Russell’s reputation. So now the question becomes: what comes first, “Super Toys” or “Madden”? Stay tuned for an answer to that one.