Oh! Oliver Stone seems to have found the man to play NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden in his next film, “The Snowden Files”. And we can’t disagree with his choice of an actor even if we tried.
Variety reported that 33-year-old Joseph Gordon-Levitt has agreed to take the lead role as Edward Snowden. Just in case you’ve forgotten, Joseph has aced many roles in his career, having previously starred in the likes of “10 Things I Hate About You“, “Looper“, “Inception” (because who can forget that?), “The Dark Knight Rises“, “(500) Days of Summer”, and even “Don Jon” in which he also directed. As it is, he will already be playing high wire artist Philippe Petit in forthcoming biopic “The Walk”, about the latter’s successful crossing of the World Trade Centre’s Twin Towers in August 1974.
It’s safe to say that Joseph Gordon-Levitt is easily one of Hollywood’s most versatile actor.
Negotiations on the deal have not yet begun, but it seems that both men are keen on making it happen.
Snowden’s story is now familiar to most: the former US intelligence analyst released more classified documents than anyone since Daniel Ellsberg’s leaking of the Pentagon Papers during the Vietnam War. He has been on the run ever since.
The film, which Stone is writing and directing, now looks likely to be based on 2 books, Harding’s account – full title “The Snowden Files: The Inside Story of the World’s Most Wanted Man” – and Time of the Octopus by Snowden’s lawyer, Anatoly Kucherena.
Stone recently picked up the screen rights to the latter tome after optioning Harding’s book in June. He will be writing and directing and will produce with Eric Kopeloff and Moritz Borman.
Production on “The Snowden Files”, titled after the book by Guardian journalist Luke Harding, is due to begin late this year or in the early part of 2015.