I guess this is confirmed now
although it seemed pretty well sewn up a couple of months ago. Johnny Depp will play antivirus software magnate-turned-maniacal fugitive John McAfee in
King of the Jungle. The long-developing film from John Requa and Glenn Ficarra (
Crazy Stupid Love) is based on Joshua Davis' Wired article about McAfee who went a little bit nutso. He was accused of a neighbor's murder, fled to Brazil and became a drug kingpin, and other such insanity that has nothing to do with scanning for malware. It sounds like a role perfectly attuned to Depp's brand of crazy, but that hasn't helped him so much in the recent past, has it? [
Variety]
In another brilliant casting move, Jane the Virgin's Gina Rodriguez will lead Catherine Hardwicke's remake of acclaimed Mexican drama, Miss Bala. Penned by Gareth Dunnet-Alcocer, the film centers on a beauty pageant queen who gets drawn into the Tijuana criminal underworld when she witnesses a murder and her best friend disappears. Ismael Cruz Córdova (In the Blood) has also joined the cast as a crime figure Rodriguez will have to deal with.
