Kevin Hart is set to pass go – and likely collect quite a bit more than £200 – with the news that he’ll be starring in the long-mooted Monopoly movie.
Hart will be reteaming with director Tim Story for the film, reports Deadline. This will be the duo’s fifth big-screen collaboration, after both Ride Along movies and the two Think Like A Man films. Genre fans will know Story’s work from the previous film franchise iteration of Marvel’s First Family, with 2005’s Fantastic Four and 2007’s Fantastic 4: Rise of the Silver Surfer.
The current Monopoly movie project is still in the earliest of stages, with the search for a new screenwriter in full effect before any set commitments like a filming date. Likewise, there are no story details to report.
Behind the scenes, headliner Hart will also produce the film via his HartBeat Productions label. Of course, Hasbro – the toy company behind the world’s best-selling board game – will have a piece of the production pie through its in-house studio Allspark Pictures, too.
Barring any initial incredulity the average moviegoer may have with the concept of a Monopoly movie, this will be an interesting vehicle for the evolution of Kevin Hart’s status as a movie star – Oscars-hosting controversy aside.
The comedian-turned-actor is coming off one of the biggest surprise hits in recent years, the Dwayne Johnson-headlined Jumanji: Welcome To The Jungle, with a sequel already in production. Additionally, besides a third Ride Along film, Hart will work with Tim Story on a comedy called My Own Worst Enemy, and will headline a remake of the Dan Aykroyd/John Candy comedy classic, The Great Outdoors.