Ben Affleck and Matt Damon Plan Hulk Hogan Vs. Gawker Trial Movie

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Hulk Hogan in ‘No Holds Barred’. Photo: New Line Cinema.

Preview:

Ben Affleck and Matt Damon are starring in a new movie.
Gus Van Sant is aboard to direct ‘Killing Gawker’.
The movie follows wrestler Hulk Hogan’s legal battle around his sex tape.

Ben Affleck and Matt Damon had success with the real-life tale of how Nike snagged its deal with Michael Jordan via ‘Air’. But for their next based-on-truth tale, they’ve apparently picked up a much wilder affair.

The duo are attached to star in and produce (via their company Artists Equity) ‘Killing Gawker’, which will follow the 2016 story of how Hulk Hogan took gossip site Gawker to trial over the controversial release of his sex tape.

Not Yet Rated

An upcoming film based on the Hulk Hogan vs. Gawker court case. Read the Plot

Unlike ‘Air’, which had Affleck in the director’s chair, this one could well see a reunion for the duo with someone who had a huge impact on their cinematic past –– Gus Van Sant, who directed their first script ‘Good Will Hunting’ (which won the duo an Oscar), is reportedly on board to direct.

According to reporter Jeff Sneider (with the news also cropping up at PWInsider), the movie, which has been bouncing around in development, will now kick into a higher gear.

What’s the story of ‘Killing Gawker’?

(L to R) Randy “Macho Man” Savage and Hulk Hogan at 1998’s ‘Survivor Series’. Photo: WWE.

With a script by ‘The Big Short’s Charles Randolph, based on Ryan Holiday’s 2018 book ‘Conspiracy: Peter Thiel, Hulk Hogan, Gawker, and the Anatomy of Intrigue’, the movie will chronicle the lawsuit that Hogan filed against now-defunct website Gawker for publishing a sex tape video Hogan wasn’t aware was being filmed in the moment by former friend Bubba the Love Sponge (to be clear, Hogan was having relations with Bubba’s wife).

The tape was later stolen and leaked. Peter Thiel, the former CEO of PayPal, funded Hogan’s lawsuit in secret in order to hurt Gawker, which had previously published negative stories about him. Hogan ended up winning a huge judgment and Gawker was shuttered. In July 2021, Gawker relaunched under the ownership of Bustle Digital Group, whose founder and CEO Bryan Goldberg bought the website’s assets for $1.35 million in a 2018 bankruptcy auction. The revival was short-lived, as the new Gawker was shut down in February 2023.

Who will Affleck and Damon play in ‘Killing Gawker’?

Ben Affleck and Matt Damon at the 81st Annual Golden Globe Awards, airing live from the Beverly Hilton in Beverly Hills, California on Sunday, January 7, 2024, at 8 PM ET/5 PM PT, on CBS and streaming on Paramount+.

(L to R) Ben Affleck and Matt Damon at the 81st Annual Golden Globe Awards, airing live from the Beverly Hilton in Beverly Hills, California on Sunday, January 7, 2024, at 8 PM ET/5 PM PT, on CBS and streaming on Paramount+. Photo: Sonja Flemming/CBS ©2024 CBS Broadcasting, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

Sneider reports that Affleck will be Hulk Hogan and Damon is set as Peter Thiel. And boy, we cannot wait to see the set pics/first images of Ben Affleck in character as Hulk Hogan!

Apparently, the team want to have this one shooting in early 2025, but there’s no formal date set just yet.

When will ‘Killing Gawker’ be on screen?

With no studio or streaming home attached yet, there is no release date to report, but given the elements involved, we can’t imagine this won’t be snapped up quickly.