Benedict Cumberbatch Replacing Guy Pearce In Johnny Depp Film ‘Black Mass’
Scott Cooper directing Johnny Depp in ‘Black Mass’
Benedict Cumberbatch is set to replace Guy Pearce in the latest film from Johnny Depp, Black Mass.
The crime drama tells to true story of James ‘Whitey’ Bulger, one of the most infamous leaders on the Boston crime scene from the 1940s until his arrest in 2011, and his imprisonment for 19 counts of murder.
Guy Pearce was originally set to play William ‘Billy’ Bulger, a democratic politician and the law-abiding brother of Johnny Depp’s character. However, Guy Pearce dropped out of production for unknown reasons, possibly due to a scheduling conflict, and has now been replaced by Benedict Cumberbatch.
Johnny Depp also originally left production over salary issues, but soon returned and signed on in the lead role.
Black Mass has Scott Cooper directing, aswell as writing the screenplay. The film is based on the book Black Mass: Whitey Bulger, the FBI, and a Devil’s Deal by Dick Lehr and Gerard O’Neill, and is currently filming in Boston.
This latest offering from Warner Bros. also stars Joel Edgerton as corrupt FBI agent John Connolly, Dakota Johnson as Bulger’s former girlfriend Lindsey Cyr, Sienna Miller as Bulger’s longtime girlfriend Catherine Greig and Breaking Bad actor Jesse Plemons as fellow gang member Kevin Weeks.
Black Mass currently has a release date of October 2015.
