Jonah Hill to star as Jerry Garcia
Famed director Martin Scorsese is reportedly making a music biopic about legendary Bay Area rock act the Grateful Dead.
So, of course, Deadheads will want to know who’s going to play the group’s iconic vocalist-guitarist Jerry Garcia? It’s going to be Jonah Hill, according to various reports.
Hill, who has starred in such films as “Superbad,” “Moneyball” and “Knocked Up,” seems to have confirmed the casting choice with an Instagram post, showing a headline that reads that he was chosen to play Garcia in the movie. Hill previously worked with Scorsese on “The Wolf of Wall Street,” which landed the actor a best supporting actor Oscar nomination.
It was his second nomination in that category. His first came for the Oakland A’s/Billy Beane biopic “Moneyball.”
This is not the first time that Scorsese has traveled into Grateful Land. The “Goodfellas” director also was the executive producer of the excellent 2017 documentary on the band — “Long Strange Trip.”
This time around, however, the executive producers are even more familiar with the subject matter.
“Surviving members of the Grateful Dead appear to have given the upcoming movie their blessing, with (Bob) Weir, (Bill) Kreutzmann, (Phil) Lesh and Mickey Hart on board as executive producers. Trixie Garcia, the daughter of Jerry Garcia, and the band’s manager Bernie Cahill will also executive produce, along with Eric Eisner,” according to Variety.
The film reportedly does not yet have a title. (Although we’re pulling for “Ripple” in that regard.)
It’s being developed for Apple and it’s not currently known when production will begin, according to Variety.
Garcia died in 1995 of a heart attack while at a rehab facility in Marin County. He was 53.
The Grateful Dead marked its 50th anniversary in 2015 with a series of sold-out farewell shows, but many members continue to tour as part of spinoff groups like Dead & Company.