Bradley Cooper To Play The Title Character In Steven Spielberg's New Bullitt Movie
One of the greatest filmmakers of all time, one of the best actors of our generation, and one of the most thrilling action/thrillers the genre has ever given us? Yeah, you could say we're excited for this news.
We knew that the living legend Steven Spielberg had his sights set on putting his own stamp on the 1968 classic "Bullitt," starring Steve McQueen and featuring one of the most heralded car chase sequences ever put to film. At the time, the untitled film had yet to feature a completed screenplay, a main lead, or even a distributor. Most of those somewhat crucial elements are still unconfirmed, but we at least have a better idea of who Spielberg is intent on casting to fill the unfillable shoes of the action star McQueen. No pressure or anything!
According to Deadline, Bradley Cooper has been personally handpicked to play the role of Frank Bullitt, the San Francisco cop with a mean trigger finger and an even more capable hand behind the wheel of a Mustang GT. Cooper will also serve as an executive producer, speaking to his level of creative ownership alongside Spielberg as the two have spent quite some time circling this project together. Writer Josh Singer ("The West Wing," "Spotlight," "First Man") has been tapped to craft the script, having previously collaborated with Spielberg on 2017's quietly brilliant "The Post."
Bradley Cooper gets behind the wheel of Bullitt
There's simply no one-upping the original "Bullitt," the San Francisco-set thriller directed by Peter Yates that's most well-known for its memorable and game-changing car chase (much of which was actually performed by Steve McQueen, naturally) and eventually was considered a stone-cold classic. Thankfully, Steven Spielberg knows better than to think otherwise. After remaking "West Side Story" to great success, the acclaimed director is instead telling "a new idea centered on the character," according to Deadline, rather than a straight-up remake. As of yet, however, the film is still considered in-development and has a ways to go before ultimately going before the camera.
The report indicates that Spielberg and Cooper have been attempting to brainstorm ideas for this project ever since the pandemic shutdown, though the pair have been eager to work together for much longer than that. There's no word yet on any story details, car chases, or whether Cooper will perform any of his own driving stunts (though the actor has a certain prickly history with cars, if we take his hilarious performance in Paul Thomas Anderson's "Licorice Pizza" into account). Interestingly enough, Steve McQueens son Chad and granddaughter Molly are set to executive produce the film, as well.
Now an accomplished filmmaker in his own right after "A Star Is Born," Cooper has been busy both behind and in front of the camera Guillermo del Toro's "Nightmare Alley," voice acting as Rocket for various installments of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and writing, directing, and starring in the in-production Leonard Bernstein biopic "Maestro."