©Courtesy of A24, The Britalist.

Guy Pearce is in discussions to portray media mogul and NewsCorp founder, Rupert Murdoch in the upcoming film, Ink. Danny Boyle will direct the new feature for Studiocanal, Media Res and House Productions, Deadline is reporting.

Besides the recent Oscar-nominated Pearce, English actor Jack O’Connell is also in negotiations to star in the movie. The Back to Black performer is in negotiations to  play Larry Lamb. Murdoch hired Lamb to run The Sun when he purchased the newspaper in 1969.

The Ink film is based on the 2017 play of the same name. James Graham wrote, and Rupert Goold helmed, the play, which premiered in London. Graham went on to adapt the play’s story into the film’s screenplay

The play’s story follows Murdoch as he sets out to make The Sun a must-read news source with Lamb’s help. The collaboration led to a long-standing rivalry between The Sun, which was a struggling newspaper, and The Mirror. The publications’ competitive natures helped launch the rise of the modern British tabloids.

Boyle has built his career by adapting powerful real-life stories into such thrilling cinematic experiences as Slumdog Millionaire, 127 Hours and Steve Jobs. He won the Academy, BAFTA and Golden Globe Awards for directing Slumdog Millionaire.

Besides helming, Boyle is also producing Ink. He’s working with fellow producers Tessa Ross and Michael Ellenberg on the new biopic. Boyle and Ross previously worked together on Slumdog Millionaire. Joining them as producers on the upcoming movie are Tracey Seaward and Tonia Davis.

Studiocanal is fully financing the film. Ron Halpern and Joe Naftalin will oversee the biopic’s production for the studio. Studiocanal will release the screen adaptation in their territories of the UK, France, Germany, Poland, Benelux and Australia. NZ is handling worldwide sales.

Hollywood has occasionally chronicled Murdoch’s life and career over the years. Malcolm McDowell most recently played the media mogul in a cameo role in the 2019 biographical drama, Bombshell. Therefore, Ink will be the first movie to truly dive into how he came to be one of the most influential figures in the history of media.

Boyle chose Pearce and O’Connell as his top choices to play Murdoch and Lamb from the beginning of Ink‘s development.

Pearce most recently appeared in the critically acclaimed role in the A24 epic The Brutalist, which earned him his first Oscar nomination. The Australia native was considering several offers for his follow-up role. But he began to seriously consider accepting the role in Ink, as it’s offering him the opportunity to play one of his country’s most iconic figures.

If O’Connell accepts the role of Lamb in Ink, he’ll reunite with Boyle. Notably, they previously collaborated on this summer’s hit post-apocalyptic horror sequel, 28 Years Later. The coming-of-age  drama, which is the second follow-up in the acclaimed series, garnered $150 million at the global box office. After seeing O’Connell’s performance in the franchise’s third installment, Boyle made the actor’s character a focal point in the series’ next entry, 28 Years Later: Bone Temple. The series’ third sequel will be released in January.