Casey Affleck has landed a deal with Warner Bros. for a true-life drama titled Boston Strangler, which he will star in and produce. Written by Chuck MacLean, the film will focus on 13 unsolved stranglings that took place in Boston back in the 60s. Affleck will likely play the lead role, that of a detective who risks his “career and life in a race to bring down the most notorious sexual predator of the day, while battling a political cover-up by corrupt politicians and lawyers trying to save their careers.”
Being described as in the vein of David Fincher’s Se7en and Zodiac, this project has promise written all over it. Though he doesn’t pop up too often, Casey Affleck is one of my favorite actors, offering excellent performances in films like Gone Baby Gone, The Killer Inside Me, The Assassination Of Jesse James By The Coward Robert Ford and of course, the Ocean’s 11 series. Though he may not be as high profile as his older brother Ben, his work is always solid and I’ve always enjoyed his films.
Boston Strangler seems like a great project for the young actor and from the sounds of it, it may even lead to some Awards recognition. Being a huge fan of both Se7en and Zodiac also helps amp up my excitement for this project, as those were both very well done crime thrillers and are some of the best work in the genre. If Boston Strangler can be even half as good as those two aforementioned films then we’ll be in for a real treat.
A gripping true story, a fantastic lead actor, comparisons to some of the best work in the genre….what can go wrong with this one? In my mind, not much.
What do you think though? Does Boston Strangler sound appealing to you? Looking forward to seeing Casey Affleck lead another film?