It's no surprise that "Mystic River," "Gone Baby Gone" and "Shutter Island" scribe Dennis Lehane has been able to attract top talent for his adaptation of his own short story "Animal Rescue." David Cronenberg and more recently, "Limitless" helmer Neil Burger came aboard, and with the latter now focused on the YA franchise "Divergent," a pretty exciting new name has stepped in.
"Bullhead" director Michael Roskam is in talks to direct, and he'll possibly have another burly lead to work with as Tom Hardy is being eyed for the lead. And frankly, given that he's currently developing two anti-poaching movies, we think this particularly story will be of interest. Here's how Variety breaks down the plot: "Crime drama follows a lonely Boston bartender who rescues a puppy from a garbage can and becomes the target of the dog's abusive and mentally unstable former owner, while simultaneously getting caught in the middle of a criminal conspiracy playing out in his mob-controlled bar." Tom Hardy laying the smackdown and assholes who abuse dogs? Yeah, we'd watch the shit out of that.
Nothing is locked in just yet, but should all the pieces come together, shooting would begin early next year for the Fox Searchlight project. Roskam also has the HBO series "Buda Bridge" developing, while Hardy is currently at work on "Mad Max: Fury Road." Undoubtedly, the actor has his choice of projects, but this sounds particularly exciting.
