Matthew McConaughey and “True Detective” creator Nic Pizzolatto are reuniting for another epic detective story, a feature film adaptation of the iconic private investigator Mike Hammer.
McConaughey is in talks to lead the Skydance film based on the bestselling crime novels by Mickey Spillane and Max Allan Collins, with Pizzolatto writing the screenplay.
According to Variety, the project marks the pair’s first major collaboration since the acclaimed first season of HBO’s “True Detective” in 2014.
Skydance has acquired the rights to the Mike Hammer franchise and is developing the adaptation as a high-profile crime thriller. The film will be produced by Skydance’s David Ellison, Dana Goldberg and Don Granger, along with Guymon Casady of Entertainment 360.
Benjamin Forkner and Ken F Levin are also producing, with Collins as executive producer and Jane Spillane as co-producer. Carin Sage will oversee the project for Skydance.
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McConaughey recently returned to acting after a six-year break with “The Rivals of Amziah King”, and will next star in Apple TV+’s “The Lost Bus” alongside America Ferrera.
“I needed to write my own story, direct my own story on the page,” he said earlier this year, reflecting on his time away from the screen.
Pizzolatto, a multiple Emmy and Golden Globe nominee, is known for his literary and television work, including his recent directorial debut “Easy’s Waltz” and a Netflix project in development.
Pizzolatto is represented by WME, Gillett Management, Eric Brooks of Goodman, Genow, Schenkman, Smelkinson & Christopher.