Hugh Jackmans P.T. Barnum musical gets a start date

Fox has pencilled in a summer start date for The Greatest Showman On Earth, the Hugh Jackman-starring biopic of legendary showman, P.T. Barnum.

The new film will be a musical, telling the story of Barnum’s rise to prominence and homing in on his growing infatuation with opera singer Jenny Lind, otherwise known as The Swedish Nightingale.

Cameras are set to begin rolling on the project next summer, with Deadline reporting that the studio is beginning to put deals in place with Jackman’s supporting players.

Intriguingly, the film will not be based on any one piece of source material, making it the first original live-action movie musical since Newsies, back in 1992.

Michael Gracie is currently in place to direct the film, with the latest version of the script having been written by Bill Condon. No release date has been confirmed at this stage.