Elizabeth Banks Set to Direct Thriller COCAINE BEAR for Universal With Phil Lord and Chris Miller Producing

Actress and director Elizabeth Banks is set to direct the upcoming thriller pic Cocaine Bear for Universal, with Phil Lord and Chris Miller producing. The three worked together in The Lego Movie franchise. Cocaine Bear was written by Jimmy Warden, and it is described as “a character-driven thriller inspired by true events that took place in Kentucky in 1985.”

I happen to be familiar with this story, as it was talked about on my favorite podcast, My Favorite Murder. The story goes that this guy, Andrew Thornton II, a Kentucky native, became a major player in drug trafficking from Columbia. After making a drop in Georgia, he tried to jump from his plane, and his parachute didn’t deploy. He fell to his death, and lost a package of $15 million worth of cocaine. Three months later, a black bear was found in Georgia's Chattahoochee National Forest, dead from a cocaine overdose, after having found and consumed much of the package. Poor bear. This should make for a very interesting movie though.

The film is set to start shooting this summer. Are you intrigued by the story of Cocaine Bear?

via: Deadline