Taron Egerton (Eddie the Eagle, Kingsman) is in discussions to replace Tom Hardy in the lead role for the Elton John biopic Rocketman.
Baz Bamigboye of the Daily Mail reports that 27-year-old Egerton has had informal conversations with director Dexter Fletcher and producer Matthew Vaughn about the possibility.
The choice of Egerton is little surprise. Unlike Hardy who admits he struggles to carry a tune, Egerton is a strong tenor. The young actor worked with Hardy on Legend, has now done two films directed by Vaughn and recently worked with John on the “Kingsman” sequel.
The film follows teenager Reginald Dwight who won a piano scholarship at the age of 11 and went on to adopt the stage name Elton John and create numerous pop song hits. The film reportedly won’t gloss over some of the juicier parts of the openly gay and flamboyant John’s private life and is said to explore how he has retained his fame in spite of scandals.
Lee Hall penned the script for the film which had stalled until Vaughn and John worked together on Kingsman: The Golden Circle and decided to fast track the project which could film by the end of the year for John’s Rocket Pictures and Vaughn’s Marv Films.
