MGM is developing the superhero drama “Samaritan” with Sylvester Stallone attached to star and produce through his Balboa Productions.
The studio has acquired Bragi F. Schut’s script, which centers on a boy learning that a missing superhero, who vanished 20 years earlier after a battle, may still be alive. MGM will develop “Samaritan” with Stallone and Braden Aftergood of Balboa. Schut will executive produce the pic.
Stallone launched Balboa Productions in May and set its first project at MGM to develop a movie about boxer Jack Johnson, who was posthumously pardoned by President Donald Trump. Johnson was a dominant boxer and the first African-American heavyweight champion. Stallone was instrumental in obtaining a presidential pardon for Johnson, who was convicted of violating the Mann Act in 1910 for transporting a woman across state lines for “immoral purposes.”
Stallone also partnered with MGM on the Rocky movies and the “Creed” spinoffs, which he starred in with Michael B. Jordan. “Creed II” was directed by Steven Caple Jr., from an original screenplay written by Stallone based on characters from the Rocky franchise.
Schut’s credits include Sony’s horror-thriller “Escape Room,” which grossed $115 million worldwide. He is repped by Verve, Realm Management, and Eclipse Law Corporation. The news was first reported by Deadline Hollywood.