Ok, it’s actually probably not coming any time soon. These things take development time, but a biopic of the late Jerry Garcia, the leader of the ’60s hippie folk-rockers the Grateful Dead, has begun according to THR.
The untitled project will actually focus on the counter-cultural icon’s life before his time in the Grateful Dead, which includes time in the military, a life-changing car accident and his fortuitous encounter with Dead bassist Phil Lesh.
The film’s producers (who were behind little indie gems like “Election” and “Little Miss Sunshine”) have acquired the rights to “Dark Star,”an oral history of Garcia that includes 60 participants, friends and colleagues that knew the singer intimately.
Music rights, always a concern, are being haggled over, but as the Hollywood Reporter notes, since it’s the early, pre-Dead period of his life, perhaps they’ll be less famous acid-rock music to clear.
Topper Lilien, whose best credit includes Paul Newman’s 2000 film, “Where The Money Is,” is attached to write the script (he also wrote “Dungeons & Dragons“).
You know someone’s going to want to call this film, “Truckin’: The Jerry Garcia Story,” or some shit. Don’t do it.
The Grateful Dead – “Friend Of The Devil”
“Truckin’ live, 1972