Ben Affleck and Matt Damon’s production company, Artists Equity, is developing a feature film centered on Hulk Hogan’s legal battle with Gawker Media, as confirmed by The Hollywood Reporter.
The production company has acquired the script Killing Gawker from screenwriter Charles Randolph, who won an Oscar for his work on The Big Short in 2015. The film is an adaptation of Ryan Holiday’s 2018 nonfiction book Conspiracy: Peter Thiel, Hulk Hogan, Gawker and the Anatomy of Intrigue.
Gus Van Sant, known for directing Affleck and Damon in Good Will Hunting, is reportedly in discussions to direct Killing Gawker. Media sources suggest Affleck is considering the role of Hulk Hogan, though no casting decisions have been finalized yet.
The case, which culminated in Gawker Media agreeing to pay $31 million to Hogan in November 2016, stemmed from a lawsuit over the publication of an excerpt from a 2006 sex tape. This legal battle eventually led to Gawker’s website being shut down.
Peter Thiel, the billionaire entrepreneur who co-founded PayPal and helped finance Hogan’s lawsuit, is also a remarkable figure in the story. Affleck and Damon have previously collaborated on Air, a biographical film directed by Affleck and starring Damon, under the Artists Equity banner.