Olivia Wilde has an Independent Spirit Award win and a new gig to celebrate this week. On Saturday the multi-hyphenate picked up the Spirit Award for Best First Feature for “Booksmart,” and now word comes that the “BoJack Horseman” actress will direct “Perfect,” a biopic of Olympic gymnast Kerri Strug. Deadline suggests that the project will be “among the hottest packages” at the European Film Market in Berlin next week.
Based on Strug and John P. Lopez’s book “Landing On My Feet, A Diary Of Dreams,” the pic will revisit how the gymnast overcame the odds — and an injury — at the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta. Despite tearing two ligaments in her ankle in her first vault, Strug famously stuck the landing of her second, securing USA’s first-ever gold medal in the team all-around. She was carried onto the medals podium to be recognized alongside her team members, and became a national hero.
Ronnie Sandahl (“Borg/McEnroe”) penned the script. Riverstone Pictures and Pulse Films are producing.
Casting is underway for “Perfect,” and Wilde will be in Berlin to discuss the project with buyers.
“This is a film about what real power looks like,” said Wilde. “It is an excruciatingly beautiful underdog story that will thrust the audience into the heart of Kerri Strug with unblinking, raw honesty. It is an epic sports movie that will deliver on all the wish-fulfillment that makes those films so thrilling to watch. At the same time, it is unlike any sports movie you have seen before.”
Wilde earned rave reviews for “Booksmart,” her coming-of-age comedy about overachieving BFFs (Beanie Feldstein and Kaitlyn Dever) who, on the eve of their high school graduation, vow to cram four years of fun into one night. Her upcoming directing slate includes “Don’t Worry, Darling,” a psychological thriller set in the 1950s, and an untitled holiday comedy.
On screen, Wilde’s recent credits include “Richard Jewell,” “Life Itself,” and “A Vigilante.”
Check out a clip of Strug’s iconic landing below.
