Josh Gad Will Play Roger Ebert In ‘Russ & Roger’ [Updated]
By Russ Fischer/Sept. 1, 2015 12:30 pm EST
Original story follows.
Josh Gad is best known for playing roles in Frozen and The Book of Mormon, but he has dabbled with portraying real figures, too. He played Apple Computer co-founder Steve Wozniak in Jobs, and now he’s in line to play the late film critic Roger Ebert in Russ & Roger.
The film already has Will Ferrell lined up to play filmmaker Russ Meyer, who with Ebert created the film Beyond the Valley of the Dolls. This film plans to explore their friendship and working relationship, and the origin of that film. And if we see Josh Gad as Roger Ebert opposite Ferrell as Meyer, we have to assume it is meant to be quite the comedy as well.
The news of Gad being in line for the role came from Hollywood Elsewhere, and The Wrap adds that the actor does not have a deal at this point, but that he’s the top choice for the gig. The news came straight from the film’s producer David Permut. The script is by Christopher Cluess of SNL.
That pegs the film as a potentially fun romp through the heady days of “anything goes” Hollywood as new voices briefly triumphed over old establishment types. And of course there’s the easy attention-getting ploy of casting women to play the various large-busted actresses with whom Meyer always associated, even if BVD featured a less superheroically-proportioned cast than his other films.
