Legendary Raiders head coach and commentator John Madden is set to have a movie made about him, it was revealed recently by the movie's writer, producer and director, David O. Russell.
Per Rebecca Rubin of Variety.com, the biographical drama titled "Madden" will feature actor Nicholas Cage playing the role of Madden, who passed away in 2021. It appears the focus will be on Madden's tenure as the Raiders head coach in the 1970s.
“Nicolas Cage, one of our greatest and most original actors, will portray the best of the American spirit of originality, fun, and determination in which anything is possible as beloved national legend John Madden,” O. Russell said in a statement. “Together with the ferocious style, focus, and inspired individualism of Al Davis, owner of the underdog Oakland Raiders, the feature will be about the joy, humanity and genius that was John Madden in a wildly inventive, cool world of the 1970s.”
Before he became arguably the greatest commentator in NFL history, Madden was a legendary coach for the Raiders, winning one Super Bowl during his 10 years with the team. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2006.
But Madden's contributions to the NFL didn't stop there. There is also a wildly popular video game franchise named after him that remains a juggernaut in the industry year after year.
Per the Variety.com article, Amazon MGM will back the film and more of the cast will be revealed at a later date. There is also no release date for the film as of this writing.
Cage has been in countless memorable films and is an Oscar-winning actor. Madden was a larger-than-life character, so accurately portraying him will be no easy task. We also can't wait to see who will play the role of Al Davis.