Francis Lawrence to direct film on legal battle between WWE wrestler Hulk Hogan and Gawker Media

Red Sparrow helmer Francis Lawrence has been tapped to direct the film adaptation of the book Conspiracy: Peter Thiel, Hulk Hogan, Gawker, and the Anatomy of Intrigue. Oscar-winning scribe Charles Randolph will adapt Ryan Holiday’s novel, which was published in February 2018, reported Variety. The film will detail the legal battle between the WWE wrestler Hulk Hogan; Gawker Media and its founder, Nick Denton, over a sex tape that the online media company published featuring the former WWE star. The lawsuit resulted in a $140 million judgment against Gawker and led to the outlet’s subsequent bankruptcy. [caption id=“attachment_4508383” align=“alignleft” width=“825”]  File image of Hulk Hogan. Twitter@HulkHogan[/caption] It was later revealed that billionaire Thiel secretly funded Hogan’s lawsuit out of his personal anger towards Gawker for outing him. Hogan, Denton and Thiel, will all be characters in the movie and the makers are planning to cast Hollywood A-listers to these roles. Lawrence will also produce alongside Blackrock Productions_’_ David A Neuman. “When I read Ryan’s extraordinary book I was totally taken with this story, such an exquisitely contemporary tale, and I immediately had a vision for it as a film,” said Lawrence. “It’s an important and meaningful story, and one I’m excited to tell,” he added.