Gyllenhaal football biopic still alive?

As is well documented in Hollywood history, some flicks take a little longer coming to fruition than others (just look at the new Masters Of The Universe adap).

Way back in 2007, Jake Gyllenhaal was linked to a biopic about American football’s very own quarterback “rock star” Joe Namath. But after that initial announcement, we’ve heard close to zip about the project.

Until today. Apparently director James Mangold, of Walk The Line and the upcoming thriller Knight And Day , is interested in taking on the project and giving it a fresh set of legs.

Pajiba report that the Mangold is good to take on the project, simply titled Namath , as his schedule is free as a bird after Tom Cruise action vehicle Knight And Day (which is out 14 July). Meanwhile, Gyllenhaal is similarly free for a period after Duncan Jones’ Source Code .

Could this be a rare moment of perfect Hollywood timing?

"Most of the stuff you saw in Forest Gump , Joe lived through all of it," says producer and friend Jimmy Walsh about Namath. The film will apparently follow the quarterback’s rise to rock star status – from a kid to how he earned the nickname ‘Broadway Joe’.

Call this one The Blind Side effect...

Could the newly bulked up Gyllenhaal be perfect for this role?

Josh Winning has worn a lot of hats over the years. Contributing Editor at Total Film, writer for SFX, and senior film writer at the Radio Times. Josh has also penned a novel about mysteries and monsters, is the co-host of a movie podcast, and has a library of pretty phenomenal stories from visiting some of the biggest TV and film sets in the world. He would also like you to know that he "lives for cat videos..." Don't we all, Josh. Don't we all.