Dwayne Johnson is set to star in and produce the action-drama Free Byrd, the latest feature from Ben Affleck and Matt Damon's Artists Equity.
The film will see Johnson play a Las Vegas motorcycle stuntman who hides his dementia diagnosis from everyone, including his mechanic brother, as he puts everything on the line for one final jump.
According to the official logline, Free Byrd “examines and confronts the mind’s vast mysteries and the beauty and power of asking for help before it’s too late”.
Greg Kwedar, a back-to-back Academy Award nominee for Sing Sing and Train Dreams, will direct the film and rewrite the screenplay. The script was originally written by Jon Boyer and featured on the Black List, while The Peanut Butter Falcon filmmaker duo Michael Schwartz and Tyler Nilson penned an earlier draft.
The announcement comes as Johnson prepares for the release of Disney's live-action Moana. Fresh off a Golden Globe nomination for The Smashing Machine, the actor will also be seen in Jumanji: Open World and Benny Safdie's Lizard Music.
“Free Byrd is a gift in many ways,” Johnson told Variety. “Emblematic of life’s sacred beauty, as well as life’s harsh and callous reality. The subject matter of Free Byrd has become deeply personal to Greg Kwedar and myself as we’ve started to unpack this fateful journey together”.
“Artists Equity have been incredible filmmaking and artistic partners, who not only share Greg’s vision for the film, but who are all connected to our story in their own unique and personal ways. When the mind of a loved one begins to slip away, life sure takes on a whole new meaning,” he added.
Academy Award nominee Gil Netter, known for Life of Pi and The Blind Side, first brought the project to Artists Equity and will produce the film. Producers also include Fifth Season, which previously collaborated with Artists Equity on Netflix's Animals; Johnson through Seven Bucks Productions; and Kwedar and fellow two-time Academy Award nominee Clint Bentley through Ethos.