I have been waiting to write about this since rumors began earlier this week. Being from Dallas and a huge Texas Rangers fan, it’s fair to say we love Josh Hamilton and by now everyone has heard his story. Now it seems that Casey Affleck plans on directing a biopic about Josh Hamilton and his rise, fall then rise again.
Josh Hamilton wrote a book back in 2010 titled Beyond Belief: Finding the Strength to Come Back, which if you haven’t had the opportunity to read, I highly recommend. Basically in the book Josh explains his entire life from his times in high school to being drafted #1 by the Tampa Bay Rays in 1999. Eventually, he injured himself and became addicted to drugs and alcohol and had one hell of a fall from grace. After being caught by his grandmother while smoking crack, Josh decided to turn his life around and become a better family man while finding religion. Once he became clean, Josh finally made his MLB debut with the Cincinnati Reds and was traded the following year to the Texas Rangers, becoming the star he is today.
If there was an ideal story about how drugs and alcohol addiction can destroy a life but with will and determination one can recover and live a meaningful and successful one, it’s no wonder why Hollywood has an interest in the film.
While Casey Affleck is set to direct, I want to bring some information to the table that many don’t know about. Hamilton and his wife want to be co-producers along with Basil Iwanyk. Kind of strange since neither have any film experience but I can see their reasoning for this. Iwanyk had the following to say about the film, which Warner Brothers will have first crack at
I truly think this guy’ story is one of the most inspiring stories I’ve ever read. It’s also tailor-made for a movie: it has the mythic quality of The Natural, the faith-based angle of The Blind Side, and faith is a major part of our story, and the romance of Walk the Line. Casey has totally captured those elements in his take for the movie. It is an extraordinary odyssey that took him from the depths of drug addiction, estrangement from his family, and suspension from baseball to a spectacular rebirth of his life, faith, marriage and major league career.
If I had to guess the film will probably get a PG-13 rating, however, I feel the only way to truly show the hardships Josh went through,the film needs an R rating. Hamilton won’t allow this to happen but we can always hope.
So I have to ask, if you aren’t a Rangers fan, is this a story you would go see in theaters?
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