Bro comedies are big business in Hollywood, and the story of a Miami Beach stoner who suddenly becomes a major arms dealer seems right up the bro-cinema alley. No surprise then that Todd Phillips, the director of The Hangover and Old School, has optioned the rights to a Rolling Stone article about Efraim Diveroli.
Diveroli, a high school dropout who grew up in Miami Beach's Orthodox Jewish community, took advantage of the crazy military spending spree during the Bush administration and began bidding on contracts to supply the government with arms and ammunition. Unable to keep up with demand, he began dealing in embargoed Chinese ammunition and now is sitting in jail for four years for fraud. We'll assume Phillips, who will be producing and possibly directing, would put a comical spin on it.
In fact, he has optioned the rights to a Rolling Stone article about Diveroli that plays up his marijuana habit. That article appeared this past March, but New Times has been writing about Diveroli for years.
Of course, things get optioned and abandoned all the time, but if the flick ever gets made, we have to wonder who would play Diveroli. Hmmm, an actor who can pull off Jewish stoner and ruthless teenage businessman at the same time? We think this script has Jesse Eisenberg's name written all over it. He just might have to gain some weight first. If not, maybe Andy Samberg is available.
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