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Peter Sarsgaard Writing and Directing an Adaptation of 'Born to Run'

by Ethan Anderton
June 20, 2011
Source: HitFix

This past week we saw him have fun as the villainous Dr. Hector Hammond in Green Lantern, but now the Garden State and An Education actor Peter Sargaard is looking to go behind the camera for his next film venture. Hitfix (via Bleeding Cool) has learned that the actor will make his directorial debut with an adaptation of Christopher McDougall's adventurous autobiographical book Born to Run. The nonfiction book follows the author as he finds a tribe of the world’s greatest distance runners learns their secrets, and in the process shows us that everything we thought we knew about running is just wrong. More below!

Here's a more detailed chronicle of what McDougall experiences in the book:

Isolated by the most savage terrain in North America, the reclusive Tarahumara Indians of Mexico’s deadly Copper Canyons are custodians of a lost art. For centuries they have practiced techniques that allow them to run hundreds of miles without rest and chase down anything from a deer to an Olympic marathoner while enjoying every mile of it. Their superhuman talent is matched by uncanny health and serenity, leaving the Tarahumara immune to the diseases and strife that plague modern existence. With the help of Caballo Blanco, a mysterious loner who lives among the tribe, the author was able not only to uncover the secrets of the Tarahumara but also to find his own inner ultra-athlete, as he trained for the challenge of a lifetime: a fifty-mile race through the heart of Tarahumara country pitting the tribe against an odd band of Americans, including a star ultramarathoner, a beautiful young surfer, and a barefoot wonder.

Sarsgaard will also write the adaptation, and while he had initially wanted to star in the film as Caballo Blanco, his desire to direct the film seems to have made him comfortable taking both jobs. However, his brother-in-law Jake Gyllenhaal may end up taking a starring role in the film. The actor has apparently been spotted running around Hollywood Hills in the barefoot shoes which McDougall made famous and the author himself say Gyllenhaal is involved in some capacity. Of course, he could just be producing the film and likes to stay in shape in a crazy challenging way. Super producing team and couple Kathleen Kennedy and Frank Marshall will produce the film and Sarsgaard is currently looking for financing. Sounds like an interesting assembly of talent for an adventurous story.

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