New Evel Knievel biopic takes leap forward

Black Swan's Darren Aronofsky to direct Channing Tatum as Knievel

BLACK Swan director Darren Aronofsky is in talks to direct an Evel Knievel biopic starring Channing Tatum.

The film, planned since 2011, had been stalled since director Peter Berg left the project for unspecified reasons. Now it's back on track with a new team working on the script, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

Tatum, star of 21 Jump Street and Magic Mike, has been part of the project since it first came to light. He is set to play the iconic stuntman and also co-produce the film.

Promisingly, Tatum recently completed an off-road riding course. He posted a photo of him astride a bike on Instagram, saying: 'Just finished a riding course today. I've rode dirt bikes for a while. Now I can just do it legally.'

The film has no title yet, but producer Sony has bought the rights to the book ‘Pure Evel’, which may indicate the title.

Evel has previously been played by George Hamilton in a 1971 biopic.

Anyway, here’s a gratuitious clip of Evel trying to jump 13 London buses at Wembley in 1974.

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