The name Hellmuth and American poker are almost synonymous, so it's
hardly surprising that a film on the life and career of ten times
WSOP bracelet winner Phil Hellmuth is in the works, and according
to "Production Weekly" the producers have found the right
titles and the right actor to portray the mouthy poker ace.
The star is an actor who played the young Anakin Skywalker / Darth
Vader in the Star Wars series, Hayden Christensen and the working
titles for the movie are reported to be "The Madison Kid"
or "Poker Brat".
"He's officially committed," the PW story quotes
Hellmuth as saying, referring to Christensen. The movie is scheduled
to start filming next spring
Hellmuth's rapid rise in the world of poker makes for a good story.
Raised in Madison, WI he abandoned his college education after his
junior year, using his talent to chase his dreams of becoming a poker
pro. By 1989, at age 24, he had become the youngest-ever champion
of the World Series of Poker's Main Event, in a remarkable win that
prevented Johnny Chan from taking the first prize and coveted bracelet
for the third consecutive year, a feat no poker player has yet matched.
The film is scripted by Hellmuth pal Bob Soderstrom and produced by
L.A.-based Beacon Pictures, whose impressive projects have included
Air Force One, The Hurricane, and The Emperor's Club. Soderstrom and
Beacon chairman Armyan Bernstein are also both University of Wisconsin-Madison
graduates.
Filming is likely to take place in Winnipeg, Canada but Hellmuth has
been trying to raise additional funding to make it possible for the
action to take place in his hometown. Winnipeg is a tough location
to beat economically - the city offers incentives and wage concessions.
"It's all about the bottom line," wrote Hellmuth in a local publication, "but what a missed opportunity it would be if Winnipeg served as the 'city double' for Madison. I want to visit the 'Madison Kid' movie set in April of 2007 in the city that I grew up in."