Christopher Walken 'Jersey Boys' Role Confirmed
Christopher Walken will star in the Clint Eastwood-directed film adaptation of the Broadway hit "Jersey Boys," according to reports Thursday.
The 70-year-old Academy Award-winning actor has appeared in over 100 films and television shows and will be putting his acting and singing skills to use in the big-screen version of the musical this year.
"Jersey Boys" will see Walken as mobster Angelo "Gyp" De Carlo, according to Deadline.
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Based on a true story, the film will follow the Genovese crime family including Frankie Valli who avoided the grip of organized crime as he pursued a career in music with the group the Four Seasons.
Walken has already displayed his singing talents in the film "Hairspray" while Fatboy Slim's music video for "Weapon of Choice" proved his dancing skills.
The veteran actor is just coming off film projects "A Late Quartet" and "Seven Psychopaths" before preparations for "Jersey Boys" got underway.
Production for the upcoming film is scheduled to begin in mid-September in Los Angeles, according to Deadline. Marshall Brickman and Rick Elice scripted the film, and while Graham King and Rob Lorenz are producing, Frankie Valli and Bob Gaudio are executive producers.
"Jersey Boys," which first premiered at the La Jolla Playhouse in 2004, went on to become a Tony Award-winning Broadway play that has seen over $1 billion in sales for all its companies.
As for the rest of the "Jersey Boys" film's cast, Eastwood is reportedly searching for stage actors instead of established Hollywood movie stars.
Rumor has it that Eastwood is eyeing Vincent Piazza, John Lloyd Young, Erich Bergen, and Michael Lomenda for the film.
Meanwhile, the real life Jersey Boy Valli will be in New York City to perform a weeklong engagement at Broadway Theater from Oct. 19 to 27 in celebration of his group's 50th anniversary, according to the Los Angeles Times.
