Andrew Haigh To Direct Leonardo Da Vinci Film For Universal

Matt Grobar
·2-min read

Universal Pictures has tapped renowned British filmmaker Andrew Haigh (All of Us Strangers) to write and direct a Leonardo da Vinci film based on Walter Isaacson’s bestselling 2017 biography of the artist, Deadline can confirm.

Based on thousands of pages from Da Vinci’s notebooks and new discoveries about his life and work, the biography looks to connect his art to his science, showing how Leonardo’s genius was based on skills we can improve in ourselves, such as passionate curiosity, careful observation, and an imagination so playful that it flirted with fantasy.

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An icon of the Italian Renaissance, Da Vinci was not only a prolific painter but also a polymath excelling in various fields including science, engineering, and anatomy. His masterpieces, the “Mona Lisa,” and “The Last Supper” are among the most recognizable and influential works of art in history.

Christopher Hampton wrote a previous draft of the Da Vinci script. Universal’s SVP of Production Development Ryan Jones will oversee the project on behalf of the studio.

Haigh is coming off of All of Us Strangers, Searchlight’s queer romantic fantasy starring Andrew Scott and Paul Mescal, which scored six BAFTA nominations and three at the Independent Spirits. Breaking out with 2011’s Weekend, the filmmaker has also been behind titles like Lean on Pete and 45 Years, additionally writing, directing and exec producing HBO’s Looking and directing The North Water for BBC and AMC.

The Da Vinci project will be Uni’s second adaptation of an Isaacson property. Previously, the studio adapted his 2011 biography Steve Jobs, with Danny Boyle directing and Michael Fassbender starring as Apple’s co-founder.

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