Leonardo DiCaprio and Dennis Lehane have been reported as kicking the tires on a Travis McGee movie adaptation. DiCaprio has been interested for years, but Lehane is a new addition, according to Variety .
The website called Travis McGee a “World War II drama,” and said that Fox has tapped Shutter Island/Mystic River scribe Lehane to ink a script that might hold DiCaprio’s attention. The actor is no stranger to Lehane’s material having previously starred in the film adaptation of Shutter Island .
The McGee character first appeared in a series of 21 novels by legendary mystery writer John D. McDonald, and his novel Deep Blue Good-by is cited as the basis for a Travis McGee movie adaptation.
With Dennis Lehane taking this project, it will mark the second time the novelist has turned screenwriter, and the first time on a film that isn’t an adaptation of his own material. He recently handled script chores on Animal Rescue , an upcoming film starring Noomi Rapace and Tom Hardy , based on his short story of the same name.
The character of Travis McGee can best be described as a treasure hunter-private investigator, though he doesn’t have any law enforcement or private investigator background. In the novels, he considered himself a “salvage consultant,” who charged his clients to recover property.
The Deep Blue Good-by (1964) was the first in the series, and The Lonely Silver Rain (1984) was the last. During its run, 1980’s The Green Ripper was perhaps the most recognized, picking up a National Book Award that same year.
The current film has been brewing since around 2010 when, IndieWire notes, Oliver Stone was attached to direct, followed by Paul Greengrass . Leonardo DiCaprio has been the one constant.
If the actor is still as keen on the project, however, he may have to work it around a possible Hamlet adaptation that would re-team him with his Gatsby director, Baz Luhrmann.
Would you like to see Dennis Lehane and Leonardo DiCaprio team up for a Travis McGee movie? Who do you think should direct?
[Image via DFree / Shutterstock.com ]
