Will Ferrell Backs Out of Ronald Reagan Comedy
Update: Despite reports suggesting otherwise, Will Ferrell has now backed away from the comedy, with his agent stating that “the Reagan script is one of a number of scripts that had been submitted to Will Ferrell which he had considered. While it is by no means a ‘Alzheimer’s comedy’ as has been suggested, Mr. Ferrell is not pursuing this project.”
Reagan's daughter Patti Davis penned a letter to Ferrell after the casting broke, detailing the seriousness of the illness and the tole it took on her family.
Original article: Will Ferrell will follow up a previous presidential role as George W. Bush to now pull on a different leading man's suit, set to star in the title role for Reagan.
The Black List approved script by Mike Rosolio follows Ronald Reagan's fall into dementia at the beginning of his second term, and an ambitious intern's task to convince the commander in chief that he is an actor playing the president in a movie.
There was a live read done of the script in March with Josh Brolin playing the lead role. While it's been a popular script on the streets, it has no studio or director at this stage. There'll be controversy to be sure surrounding the content and plot of the project, so it'll be interesting to see if it gets picked up.
Source: Indiewire