First it was Nick Cassavetes, then Joe Johnston and then Barry Levinson. Now it looks like the long-developing John Gotti biopic, still set to star John Travolta, finally has its ultimate director in Kevin Connolly.
Travolta has been aboard throughout the entire tortuous journey as Gotti Sr., the Gambini Family mobster convicted in 1992 of murder, extortion, racketeering, loan-sharking, illegal gambling and, just like Al Capone, tax evasion. The all-round goodfella died in prison in 2002.
His story will be viewed from the point-of-view of his son John Jr. (yet to be cast) who himself wasn't unknown to the law. He served a nine-year sentence for racketeering, but insists he's now on the straight-and-narrow. That ought to be a relief to the team behind the film, on which he's a producer, having sold his "life rights". Early version were going under the moniker Three Generations, although it's unclear if that's still the case.
Connolly is best known as an actor, principally for playing Eric Murphy on Entourage. But he's been adding directing jobs to his CV for years, beginning with episodes of Entourage, Unhappily Ever After and documentary series 30 For 30. He made his feature directing debut with Gardener Of Eden in 2007, and shot the still-unreleased Dear Eleanor, starring Isabelle Fuhrman, Patrick Schwarzenegger, Jessica Alba, Luke Wilson and Josh Lucas, in 2013.
Gotti's finances are in place, Lionsgate will release the film in the US, and the project is headed to the Toronto International Film Festival to drum up foreign sales.