Hollywood Popular Artists

Jun 22nd 2012, 17:30

Baseball player Josh Hamilton's life certainly has all the trappings of a biopic. He was a talented, successful athlete early in his characters, fell victim to addiction, lost it all, only to fight his way back to the top.

It's no wonder that studios would target Hamilton's life for a possible biopic. Deadline is reporting that Casey Affleck will both write and direct a retelling of Hamilton's rise, fall and redemption inside the world of Major League Baseball.

The film would be Affleck's second directorial effort. In 2010, he helmed the faux-documentary with his brother-in-law Joaquin Phoenix "I'm Still Here."

Learn more after the jump!

Producer Basil Iwanyk spoke about the inspiration inherent in the story of Hamilton's early career. "It's also tailor-made for a movie: it has the mythic quality of 'The Natural,' the faith-based angle of 'The Blind Side,' and faith is a major part of our story, and the romance of 'Walk the Line,'" he said. "Casey has totally captured those elements in his take for the movie. It is an extraordinary odyssey that took him from the depths of drug addiction, estrangement from his family, and suspension from baseball to a spectacular rebirth of his life, faith, marriage and major league career."

After making it to the Major Leagues as a relatively young ball player, Hamilton hit a very rough patch, which led him to an alcohol and cocaine addiction. He hit his low after he was suspended from the league and ended up cleaning toilets. He eventually found religion and went clean, leading to his triumphant return to the MLB.

Would you see a film based on the life of Josh Hamilton? Let us know in the comments below and on Twitter!

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