Just weeks after his first Oscar win for The Revenant, Leonardo DiCaprio is teaming up with J.J. Abrams and screenwriter Eric Roth, with the trio eyeing an adaptation of Killers of the Flower Moon for Paramount. The Wrap reports that the producers are currently in the midst of a bidding war for the rights to this non-fiction book by David Grann. Their current bid is at $2 million, and while there are other higher offers on the table, including one from Sony with George Clooneydirecting and Amy Pascal producing, Paramount is considered the front runner, although the deal hasn't closed yet.
The book is set in the 1920s, based on the true story of several Osage Indians being murdered in Oklahoma, where their tribe rested above a rich oil reserve. The Indians were granted rights that gave them a percentage of the oil revenue, but then many of the Indians started to get killed off. The case was handed over to a new government agency called the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), in what would be the bureau's first major homicide case.
The new agency had to fight off widespread corruption to solve the case. It isn't known if there are any plans for Leonardo DiCaprio to star in the adaptation, or for J.J. Abrams to direct at this time. If Paramount does land the project, Eric Roth, who has written true story adaptations such as Munich and The Insider, will most likely write the script.
Deadline reported earlier this week that other bidders for the project include Jason Blum and Scott Rudin for Universal, New Regency and Fox with Brad Pitt's Plan B, who developed David Grann's novel The Lost City of Z, Warner Bros and Brett Ratner's RatPac and Anonymous Content. The book is said to be an exceptional read, and a deal is expected to be reached by the end of this week.
Leonardo DiCaprio has a number of producing projects in the works including the upcoming Robin Hood: Origins and Live by Night. J.J. Abrams produces 10 Cloverfield Lane, which hits theaters this weekend, along with the upcoming sci-fi sequel Star Trek Beyond. What do you think about Leonardo DiCaprio teaming up with J.J. Abrams for Killers of the Flower Moon?
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