The life one of the Renaissance’s most famous artists will soon be coming to movie theaters, as Universal Pictures confirmed that Leonardo da Vinci biopic is in the works.
Director Andrew Heigh, known for 2023’s “All of Us Strangers,” will helm the production, which will be based on a 2017 biography of the artist by Walter Isaacson. Although the 600+-page book covers da Vinci’s entire life, It’s not yet clear whether the movie will do the same or hone in on one aspect.
A film based on the book was previously in the works at Paramount with actor Leonardo DiCaprio attached to it, but it never panned out. Universal bought the rights to the biography last year, with Oscar-winning screenwriter Christopher Hampton penning the script.
Da Vinci is getting other media attention, too—PBS will debut a two-part documentary series from Ken Burns in November. The series will “examines the Italian polymath’s unrelenting drive to understand the world and the enduring influence of his legacy,” wrote Julia Binswanger of Smithsonian magazine.
