No menu items!

COSTA RICA'S LEADING ENGLISH LANGUAGE NEWSPAPER

HomeEdward SnowdenOliver Stone to make Snowden film

Oliver Stone to make Snowden film

LONDON – Oliver Stone is to make a film about fugitive U.S. intelligence contractor Edward Snowden, based on a book by a British journalist, it was announced Monday.

Luke Harding, the author of “The Snowden Files: The Inside Story Of The World’s Most Wanted Man,” said on Twitter that the U.S. filmmaker has bought the movie rights to the book.

Harding, who writes for British newspaper The Guardian, said Stone would write and direct the film with his long-term producing partner Moritz Borman.

“I’m thrilled and delighted,” the journalist said.

Stone, an Oscar-winning director whose films include “Wall Street,” “JFK,” and “Nixon” said he was looking forward to making the film.

“This is one of the greatest stories of our time. A real challenge,” he said.

The Guardian said Stone had begun writing the screenplay, while Borman was “fast-tracking it as a major European co-production” to start filming before the end of the year.

Harding and other Guardian journalists are due to act as production and story consultants.

“The story of Edward Snowden is truly extraordinary, and the unprecedented revelations he brought to light have forever transformed our understanding of — and relationship with — government and technology,” said Alan Rusbridger, The Guardian’s editor-in-chief. “We’re delighted to be working with Oliver Stone and Moritz Borman on the film.”

Snowden is wanted by U.S. authorities for leaking series of U.S. intelligence secrets, and is currently living in Russia. His U.S. passport has been revoked.

Snowden has said he is open to the possibility of clemency or amnesty and would like to return home one day. But he maintains he carried out a patriotic act by exposing huge surveillance dragnets he said infringed the U.S. Constitution.

Washington says Snowden is welcome to return home but only to face trial for exposing sensitive top secret information it says aided U.S. enemies.

The Stone film is not the only one being made about Snowden, based on a Guardian writer’s book. Sony Pictures Entertainment said last month it has acquired the rights to the new book by Glenn Greenwald, who led the Pulitzer Prize-winning team at The Guardian that covered the story.

James Bond franchise producers Michael Wilson and Barbara Broccoli will make the movie version of “No Place to Hide,” described as “a political film that will resonate with today’s moviegoers.”

In related news, The Sunday Times reported on May 18 that Greenwald is working on his biggest piece yet about the U.S. intelligence revelations, and is about to publish a list of names of U.S. citizens on which the U.S. government spied. Should be interesting.

Trending Now

Costa Rica’s Poás Volcano Park Reopening to Tourists With Safety Measures

The Poás Volcano National Park will reopen its doors to tourism starting July 30, after  scientific entities reported a decrease in volcanic activity. This was...

A Closer Look at the Elusive Purple Gallinule in Costa Rica

Quick! Think of a purple bird! It’s a little difficult, right? I searched my brain and came up with a purple martin. A small...

Megan Fox and Machine Gun Kelly Vacation in Costa Rica with Baby

Megan Fox and Machine Gun Kelly touched down in Costa Rica for a family getaway with their three-month-old daughter, Saga Blade Fox-Baker. Photographers caught...

Costa Rica Tops Latin America in Attracting Foreign Millionaires

Costa Rica is a country that attracts millionaires. Projections indicate that by the end of 2025, a total of 350 foreign millionaires will have...

Costa Rica Court Sanctions Road Official Over Delayed Wildlife Crossings

Costa Rica’s wildlife faces perils, as authorities have continously failed to build wildlife crossings. Nonetheless, the Constitutional Court has taken a firm stance in...

Can Costa Rica’s Blue Zone Preserve Its Longevity Legacy?

The Nicoya Peninsula in Costa Rica is recognized worldwide as one of the five blue zones, where people live beyond the age of 90...
spot_img
Costa Rica Coffee Maker Chorreador
Costa Rica Coffee Maker Chorreador
Costa Rica Travel Insurance
Costa Rica Rocking Chait
Costa Rica Travel

Latest News from Costa Rica