After Hit Man, Glen Powell and Richard Linklater tackle Lou Gehrig biopic

Glen Powell can’t seem to quit Richard Linklater, can he? Before he was showing up Tom Cruise in Top Gun: Maverick, Powell was already getting noticed as part of Linklater’s ensemble in Everybody Wants Some!!, that oddball spiritual sequel to Dazed and Confused. Their paths crossed again with Netflix’s Hit Man, which let Powell flex his comic timing and fake-moustache game. Now it sounds like Powell and Linklater have two major projects lined up together—and one involves one of the most legendary names in baseball history.

Lou Gehrig film on the way

The big news: Powell is set to pull on pinstripes as baseball icon Lou Gehrig in a new feature from Universal, directed by Linklater. This is the first serious crack at Gehrig’s story since the old Hollywood classic Pride of the Yankees, which gave us Gary Cooper's take way back in 1942. This time, the biopic has Simon Rich writing and Lorne Michaels—yes, the SNL boss and chronic Yankees tragic—producing via his Broadway Video banner along with Erin David. Michaels has a standing arrangement with Universal, so that adds up. Powell himself is producing as well, on behalf of Barnstorm, while Linklater is apparently looking to get his production outfit Detour Filmproduction on board too.

The seven-time All-Star played in a record 2,130 consecutive games, a mark that was thought to be unreachable until Baltimore’s Cal Ripken topped it in 1998.

If you’re new to the legend, Gehrig’s record for consecutive games stood as one of those sports achievements everyone assumed would last until the sun burned out—before Cal Ripken Jr. dug his heels in during the nineties. And, of course, Gehrig’s name is tied just as strongly to his tragic battle with ALS, making him one of the most revered and beloved figures in American sport, with a legacy far outweighing his already-outsize stats.

Hit Man: the (possible) series

If that wasn’t enough Powell-Linklater synergy, they’re also trying to make a Hit Man series happen for Netflix. No green light just yet, but apparently there’s real momentum from the film’s success this year. Powell would be back as Gary Johnson—the mild-mannered academic who moonlights as a ridiculously inventive undercover 'hit man' for the Houston police. Stephen Falk (Yes, the twisted mind behind You're the Worst) is on tap as showrunner, with AGC Television and Powell’s own Barnstorm Productions in the mix.

• Powell and Linklater collaborating again after Hit Man’s film debut
• Stephen Falk (You’re the Worst) writing the series adaptation
• No official confirmation from Netflix, but strong industry chatter
• Premise is expected to mirror the film: Powell's character dons disguises to pose as a fake contract killer, gets mixed up with a woman who tries to hire him, and the whole double-life thing spins further out

Details are thin as of now—no casting for the TV version, no word on whether Linklater would direct, and Netflix haven’t put out any official statement. But the sources reporting this seem pretty confident it’s happening, so don’t be surprised if this moves quickly now that Hit Man’s done numbers for the streamer.