The project, currently titled “Killing Gawker,” will be directed by Gus Van Sant, the man behind the cameras on Affleck and Damon’s initial hit “Good Will Hunting.”
The producer of Matt Damon and Ben AffleckArtists Equity, has acquired a script from Charles Randolph which adapts the book of Ryan Holiday “Conspiracy: Peter Thiel, Hulk Hogan, Gawker and the Anatomy of Intrigue”.
The nonfiction article details the professional wrestler’s legal battle Hulk Hogan against the Gawker portal that led to the closure of the website since the co-founder Nick Denton to file for bankruptcy. The legal proceedings were funded by Silicon Valley conservatives Peter Thielwho was angry at Gawker for revealing his homosexuality many years earlier.
The project, currently titled “Killing Gawker”will be directed by Gus Van Santwho really kick-started Affleck and Damon’s careers in earnest with “Good Will Hunting,” which earned them both an Oscar for original screenplay.
Although casting has yet to be confirmed, Affleck is rumored to be playing the role of Hogan.
The Hulk Hogan scandal and a sex tape
This all stemmed from a 2012 post on Gawker that included a clip from a Hogan sex tape and Heather Clemthe wife of the radio host Todd Alan Clem (aka Bubba the Love Sponge). Denton cited the First Amendment in keeping it, even defying a judge’s order to remove the clip.
In 2016, Hogan won a $140 million judgment against GawkerHogan was awarded $55 million in economic damages and $60 million for emotional distress, and later awarded another $25 million in punitive damages. Gawker settled for $31 million. Although Gawker was shut down, many of its other websites continued to operate. Gawker briefly resumed in 2021, but shut down in February 2023.
Source: Ambito
I am an author and journalist who has worked in the entertainment industry for over a decade. I currently work as a news editor at a major news website, and my focus is on covering the latest trends in entertainment. I also write occasional pieces for other outlets, and have authored two books about the entertainment industry.
