Jake Gyllenhaal in Talks For Boston Marathon Bombing Film STRONGER

It's been two years since the Boston Marathon bombing, but the tragedy of that day is still fresh in a lot of minds across the country. Multiple film studios, having let a little bit of time pass, have optioned the rights to books and life stories in order to make a movie about the event and its aftermath, and it appears that Stronger is going to be first out of the gate. David Gordon Green is lined up to direct, and Variety reports that Jake Gyllenhaal is now in early talks to star.

The film is based on the story of Jeff Bauman, who was standing at the finish line waiting for his girlfriend when a bomb went off and caused him to lose both of his legs. Variety's sources claim several A-list actors have met for the film but Gyllenhaal is the favorite, and an offer is expected to go out to him soon.

I imagine those who have only seen Green's comedies (Pineapple Express, Your Highness) may think he's a strange choice to direct, but the rest of his filmography reveals a filmmaker who's highly capable of juggling wildly different tones, so I'm interested to see how he tackles this topic. Gyllenhaal, of course, has been on a tremendous run over the past few years, so anything he's interested in instantly has my attention.