Jackson, Hartnett Star in Fake Boxer Flick

Josh Hartnett and Samuel L. Jackson have signed on to star in Resurrecting the Champ, a drama that sounds like it could be pretty great, if the writer/director has the balls to make it dark enough. According to Variety, the movie will focus on a young reporter (that's Josh) who comes across a homeless man (Sam) and, instead of leaving him alone, decides that he's a famous former boxing champion. It turns out, however, that the reporter is a moron, and the guy is no more a boxing champ than you or I. So, do you see where I'm going with the whole dark thing? If the movie is less about Hartnett's naiveté and more about manipulation by Jackson's character, it could have a refreshingly nasty edge that would set it apart from most of the (non-horror) stuff in theaters these days. While I remain hopeful, the fact that the reporter and the fake boxer "[develop] a close relationship" suggest that nothing very sinister is going on in the screenplay. Dammit.

The film will be directed by Rod Lurie who also did a rewrite on the script. Production is expected to begin this summer.