Houdini, born under the name Erik Weisz, was a Hungarian-American mystical stunt performer, who was known to defy all odds against his immigrant background, climbing the invisible ladder - a tale of rags-to-riches. Most notably, he escaped from nearly being buried alive and miraculously freed himself from locked up water tanks while bound by hefty chains. Although Houdini as a character has appeared in many films before, it has only been a brief, fleeting feature - nothing that remotely dives deeply into the man behind the top hat and shiny deck of cards. He has been portrayed on screen by numerous actors in the past, such as Tony Curtis, Paul Michael Glaser, Harvey Keitel, Oscar winning-actor Adrien Brody, Michael Weston, and Michael Dreyer.

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Deadline has reported that the script for a new Houdini film is being written by Neil Weidner and Gavin James. The duo have also been chosen by Paramount to screenwrite the upcoming live-action Beyblade film. Plot details for the Houdini film are being hidden, although it is understood that the movie will be set during Houdini’s time in the early 20th century - with a brooding, ominous yet chivalrous, Sherlock Holmes tone to it.

Both Di Bonaventura and Vahradian are in post-production currently for Transformers: Rise Of The Beasts. Joining the pair to produce the latest film in the Transformers franchise are Michael Bay, Tom DeSanto, and Don Murphy. Di Bonaventura and Vahradian are also pairing up for the next Pet Sematary movie as well as the upcoming Gerard Butler action flick, The Plane. Di Bonaventura is also set to produce The Meg 2: The Trench, which happens to be filming currently, on location in the UK.

Most recently, Houdini was played by actor Guy Pearce in the 2007 romantic drama, Death Defying Acts. Yet, even this was just barely brushing the surface of the story behind the great, all- knowing magician. Since the release of Death Defying Acts, Houdini has yet to be re-captured and re-visited - that is until now. It’s quite surprising that Houdini (being so well-known and loved by the public for decades) has yet to be the topic of exploration for a big screen biopic. Therefore, this upcoming Harry Houdini film is long overdue.

The illusionist drew in crowds of thousands, garnering him status as a worldwide celebrity. Houdini’s story has for too long remained hidden, as mysterious as his own essence - his story has an abundance of magic just waiting to be finally shared.

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Source: Deadline