Never Sell a Horse: Diane Lane will star in Secretariat as Penny Chenery, the owner of the 1973 Triple Crown–winning horse. Chenery was a housewife who inherited the horse from her father and was pressured to sell him as he started showing championship potential; she was adamantly against doing so and instead became “the First Lady of racing.” So the lesson here is one Vulture already passionately believes in: Never sell a horse. [Variety]
Go Speed Racer: From one champion to another: The Lance Armstrong biopic, in the works since 2006, is clicking into gear (sorry, The Hollywood Reporter already used “pedaling forward”). Seabiscuit writer-director Gary Ross has been hired to pen the screenplay based on Armstrong’s 2000 book It’s Not About the Bike, written after he won his first Tour de France (Matt Damon is rumored for the lead role). Producers wisely chose to avoid using the French translation of Armstrong’s book, the title of which reads something like It’s Not About the Bike … It’s a Little About the Doping. [HR]
Hail to the Chief: Triple threat Justin Theroux (Iron Man 2–screenwriter–Inland Empire–actor) will make his studio directing debut with Chief Ron. The comedy, about a con man who claims Mohegan blood in order to open a casino, is based on the true story of the suspicious Chief Ron Roberts, who was validated in court and is now building a casino in upstate New York. Attention, world: Now, in the post-Hangover buzz, is the time to get your Vegas-casino-wacky–bachelor-party movies green-lit. [Variety]
And Don’t Come Back: Bryan Cranston and Ron Livingston have joined Rick Gomez on Robert Celestino’s indie thriller Leave, about a novelist and his presumably thrilling encounters on a road trip. There are no other details provided, so, Bryan Cranston and Ron Livingston fanboys — let your imaginations run wild! [Variety]
Back to the Roots: The Roots are planning their eighth studio album, How I Got Over, for a summer release on Def Jam. First single will be “I Walk Alone,” with a video for the track having been shot yesterday. So, the big question: Does Jimmy Fallon get to drop a sixteen? [Billboard]
Scammed: Screenwriter David Hayter will adapt the comic book Deadworld as a potential franchise for Dark Hero Studios. The source material takes place four months after the apocalypse, with the living dead — led by King Zombie, a Harley-riding undead who resents the human survivors who had ostracized him in the past — ruling the world. Yeah, this is so far-fetched — wouldn’t the zombies die of starvation once practically everyone was a zombie? [Variety]
