With the amazing Roger Ebert documentary Life Itself in theaters and VOD right now (my 4-star review here), this is a pretty good time to start exploring a fascinating and weird period in the film critic's life. A few years ago David O. Russell was planning a biopic on legendary B-movie director Russ Meyer, but it never quite came together. Now another one is in the works titled Russ & Roger Go Beyond, and none other than Will Ferrell is circling the Meyer role.
As you might have guessed, the film will tell the wild story of how Meyer and Ebert teamed up and hit Hollywood to write the lousy counter-culture flick Beyond the Valley of the Dolls. The pairing was an odd one but Meyer wanted to work with Ebert, who was then just another lowly critic for the Chicago Sun-Times and was one of the few who gave his trashy exploitative movies good reviews. It was equally strange that 20th Century Fox gave a green light to the project, thus securing Meyer his one real shot at legitimacy. This would be a big, high-profile gig for Ferrell and only the second time he's played a real-life figure. In 1996 he played Bob Woodward in the political comedy, Dick.
The script for this one comes from Christopher Cluess (SNL), and it's apparently coming together quickly. Edgar Wright is said to be interested in directing but he's got a couple of projects that take precedent, and Deadline suggests Jonah Hill or Seth Rogen could be perfect for the Ebert role.
