In 1919, a group of artists united to form an American film studio called United Artists. Among them were D.W. Griffith, Charlie Chaplin, Douglas Fairbanks and a curly-haired silent film star named Mary Pickford. The Canadian-American actress, whose career spanned decades, from silent films to the talkies, went on to achieve a kind of global fame that, for a time anyway, wasn't common, to say the least. And she was referred to as "America's Sweetheart." Between her contributions to the film industry, including co-founding the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences, and her personal life, which included three marriages (one of which was to Douglas Fairbanks), there's likely plenty of story to tell in a biopic. We may find out soon enough.
Deadline reports that Julie Pacino and Jennifer DeLia's Poverty Row Entertainment, along with producer Said Zahraoui have picked up the rights to adapt Eileen Whitfield's book Pickford: The Woman Who Made Hollywood. DeLia is set to direct the biopic based on a script written by Josh Fagin. The project is aiming to begin production in early 2013.
Getting to see a film about Pickford is intriguing enough, but factor in the casting possibilities and there's even more to anticipate here. Who should play Pickford? Will they go for someone like Anne Hathaway or perhaps Amy Adams or aim for someone a little bit younger, like Emma Watson or Emma Stone? I suppose it depends on how much of the actress' life the story will tell. It's also entirely possible they'll look for someone lesser known to portray the film icon. And then there are some of the famous people with whom Pickford worked and socialized, who may be featured in the film, including Douglas Fairbanks and Charlie Chaplin. (Those two roles were played by Robert Downey Jr. and Kevin Kline in Richard Attenborough's 1992 film Chaplin.) It's going to be very interesting to hear updates on this currently-untitled project going forward.
