Hulk Hogan Vs. Gawker Lawsuit Book Being Pitched as Movie or Series
Producer David A. Neuman has acquired the rights to Ryan Holiday’s “Conspiracy: Peter Thiel, Hulk Hogan, Gawker and the Anatomy of Intrigue,” a book about the PayPal founder’s to legal battle against Gawker, the online news site that had outed him as gay.
Thiel was the secret funder of the lawsuit brought against Gawker by Terry Bollea, better known as Hulk Hogan, the former professional wrestler who sued the news site for invasion of privacy. The lawsuit resulted in a $140 million judgment against the website, eventually bankrupting it.
“Conspiracy clearly has the big, compelling story and character elements to make an Oscar-contending film, in the vein of a Social Network or Big Short,” Neuman said in a statement announcing the rights acquisition.
He said the story could also make for a limited-run series. “We’re very far along in exploring both options,” Neuman said.
Neuman’s Blackrock Productions is in advanced talks to package a writer/director, screenwriter or showrunner to the project.
Blackrock develops, finances and produces content for all platforms. Prior to forming Blackrock, Neuman was president of programming at Current TV, chief programming officer at CNN, and former president of Walt Disney Television.
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