Temple native Bryan Burrough just tweeted the news: His Vanity Fair story about Ebola in Dallas has been optioned for the big screen. We asked Burrough for further details -- who bought it? who's writing it? -- but no dice. "I'd love to [tell you]," he says via email, "but buyer doesn't want details out yet. 140 characters about all I could safely do. Sorry!"
Understood. Regardless: Mazel tov. Besides, Burrough has more pressing matters on his mind:
Happy to say film rights for my @VanityFair story on #Dallas #ebola have been sold. Who should portray @JudgeClayJ? @Mike_Rawlings? Others?
— Bryan Burrough (@BryanBurrough) June 15, 2015
Rawlings is easy: Alec Baldwin from Martin Scorsese's The Departed. CLEARLY. (This clip has extremely adult language in it. CLEARLY.) And he is going to play the mayor of New York City in an HBO show.
Or maybe ... John Goodman?
Jenkins isn't such a sure bet. Our Tasha Tsiaperas suggests the all-grown-up Henry Thomas, otherwise known as the kid from E.T. Our colleague Matt Peterson suggests one of The Good Guys himself, Colin Hanks.
Personally, I'd like to see Isiah Whitlock Jr. as Dallas County Health and Human Services Director Zachary Thompson -- because Clay Davis, of course. But probably not. Instead, a younger Morgan Freeman. Or an older Zach Thompson. And ... Freeman was in Outbreak.
For Nina Pham, we'd suggest the rising Joanna Peh. (Or Emma Stone, if Cameron Crowe's directing.) But Bentley gets to play Bentley.
Burrough has just one suggestion: "You know Tommy Lee Jones has to be in here somewhere ..."
