Warner Bros. has signed “Monsters and Men” filmmaker Reinaldo Marcus Green to direct the tennis biopic “King Richard,” an individual with knowledge of the deal has told TheWrap.
The film will star Will Smith as Richard Williams, the father of tennis legends Venus and Serena Williams, who have won a combined 30 Grand Slam titles and 14 Doubles Grand Slam titles. Zach Baylin wrote the script, with Tim and Trevor White producing through Star Thrower and James Lassiter producing through Overlook Entertainment. Jada Pinkett Smith, Allan Mandelbaum and Caleb Pinkett are executive producers.
“Monsters and Men,” Green’s directorial debut, premiered at Sundance in 2018 and earned a Special Jury Prize for Outstanding First Feature. He has also directed the first three episodes of the upcoming Netflix series “Top Boy” and has finished shooting on his second feature film, “Good Joe Bell” starring Mark Wahlberg and Connie Britton.
Smith, who most recently starred as the Genie in Disney’s remake of “Aladdin,” is set to appear later this year in Ang Lee’s “Gemini Man,” which will be released by Paramount in October. He will also return to the “Bad Boys” franchise alongside Martin Lawrence in “Bad Boys for Life,” which hits theaters January 2020.
Green is repped by WME, and the deal was first reported by Variety
