Unless you’re a big fan of stand-up comedy, you might not have heard the name Bill Hicks. The controversial comedian was at the forefront of stand-up comedy in the early ‘90s and became one of the best-ever before his untimely death in 1994 due to cancer. And considering Hicks’ Texas upbringing, there’s probably nobody alive better suited to adapt his life for the big screen than Oscar-nominated director Richard Linklater.
Collider is reporting that Linklater has signed on to write and direct a Bill Hicks biopic for Focus Features. The film, which would tell the entire Hicks story, from his rise through the stand-up ranks thanks to his political, angry brand of comedy to his untimely death at the age of 32. Hicks has already been the subject of a film, back in 2009, when the documentary “American: The Bill Hicks Story” was released.
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The report states that it’s unclear whether the Bill Hicks biopic is the next project for Linklater. The filmmaker had been developing a project about the 1969 space race, but according to the report, that film has fallen through. As for right now, Linklater is putting the finishing touches on his upcoming film, “Where’d You Go, Bernadette,” which stars Cate Blanchett, Kristen Wiig, and Laurence Fishburne.
If you’re a fan of this website, then it’s a safe bet that you’re intimately familiar with Linklater’s incredible filmography. The director burst onto the scene in 1990 with “Slacker,” and continued to impress a few years later with “Dazed and Confused.” Most recently, Linklater has released “Everybody Wants Some!!” and “Last Flag Flying.”
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There’s no word on any production start date for the Bill Hicks film, as it’s still early in development. But as mentioned, fans of Linklater can check out ‘Bernadette,” when it hits theaters on March 22, 2019.