Joseph Gordon-Levitt Confirmed to Play as Edward Snowden in Untitled Film
Actor Joseph Gordon-Levitt has been confirmed to play as former NSA contractor and whistleblower Edward Snowden in a still untitled fim scheduled to start production January next year in Munich. The film will be directed by Oliver Stone, an Oscar-winning director known for "Platoon" and "Born on the Fourth of July."
Snowden is notoriously known as the former NSA contractor who leaked to journalists documents which revealed the National Security Agency's extensive surveillance activities in 2013. The documents included thousands of details about the data gathering of the agency from Internet activities to phone calls.
Snowden spent six weeks at the Sheremetyevo Airport in Moscow when he released the documents while asking for asylum in Russia, which he was eventually granted. In August earlier this year he was given a three-year residency permit and lives at an undisclosed location.
The film will be produced by independent studio Open Road Films and financed by Endgame Entertainment.
"I've long been an admirer of Oliver Stone and this continues our determination to work with great directors. I'm also delighted to renew our collaboration with Open Road and look forward to participating in this important film," said James D. Stern, CEO of Endgame Entertainment.
Levitt, 33-years old, is more prominently known for his roles in "500 Days of Summer," "Inception," and "The Dark Knight Rises."
The script of the Snowden film will be based on two books, "The Snowden Files: The Inside Story of the World's Most Wanted Man" by Luke Harding and "Time of the Octopus" by Anatoly Kucherena.