Back in 2014, it looked like Tom Hardy would be starring for Kathryn Bigelow in a compelling true crime tale called The True American. In the intervening years, Bigelow has moved on to other things, but Hardy has stayed in place. Now the film appears to have a new filmmaker ready to step up as Jackie director Pablo Larraín is attached to make it.
The True American will draw from Anand Giridharadas' non-fiction tome subtitled Murder And Mercy In Texas. It’s the story of Raisuddin Bhuiyan, a Bangladesh Air Force officer who longed to live and work in America’s technology sector. He made it to the States, finding temporary work in a Dallas minimart, which is where cruel fate intervened. A few days after September 11, 2001, self-styled "American Terrorist" Mark Stroman walked into the store and shot him.
Some stories would end there, but the astonishing tale isn’t done: as Stroman sat on death row for his crime and Bhuiyan struggled to recuperate from injuries that had maimed and nearly killed him, the Bangladesh native decided to seek out his attacker and grant him forgiveness, while starting a campaign against the death penalty in their state. Stroman, for his part, strove to become a better man in prison.
With Bigelow acting as a producer, the film will attempt to move forward again and Larraín will lock in a new script. The director's latest film, Neruda, will be in UK cinemas this week.
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