Elizabeth Banks to Direct ‘Cocaine Bear’ Film for Universal

After her re-imagination of Charlie’s Angels, Elizabeth Banks’ next directorial project is set to adapt the true story of the Cocaine Bear for Universal Pictures and produced by Phil Lord and Christopher Miller, according to The Hollywood Reporter. 

Cocaine Bear will portray, and we kid you not, the true story of how a Black Bear accidentally died of a cocaine overdose after consuming more than 70 pounds of the drug that was dropped from an airplane. The overall plot of the film is being kept under wraps, but just by reading the real life story’s summary, we can expect a rather wild and unique thriller. 

Cocaine Bear will also be Phil Lord and Christopher Miller’s first producing effort for Universal after signing a first-look deal with the studio for their production company, Lord Miller Productions. 

We don’t know much about the details surrounding the script or the cast, but the film is currently prepping to start shooting this summer, with a potential 2022 release date in theatres. Aside from Charlie’s Angels, Elizabeth Banks has directed the second film in the Pitch Perfect trilogy and starred in The LEGO Movie, as Wildstyle, which was directed by Lord and Miller. 

Banks’ Charlie’s Angels remake was both insanely fun and refreshing, even though it flopped at the box-office and received mixed critical reviews. Re-teaming with Lord Miller to direct a feature based on such an inane premise should be an interesting project for Banks, who seems to want to branch out in directing, by touching upon different genres and styles of filmmaking. With a premise as wild as Cocaine Bear is, the potential for a great movie is there and, with Banks teaming up with Lord Miller to transpose the story on the big screen, the possibilities for a truly memorable picture are endless. Only time will tell if the potential pays off. 

Cocaine Bear is tentatively slated to be released in 2022.