Jeremy Allen White to play Bruce Springsteen in biopic
The Emmy-winning The Bear star is all-but confirmed to play The Boss in a film based on the making of his landmark 1982 album, Nebraska.
A Bruce Springsteen biopic centred around the making of his landmark 1982 album, Nebraska, is officially in the works, with the Emmy-winning The Bear star Jeremy Allen White “in talks” to play The Boss.
Deliver Me from Nowhere, based on Warren Zanes’ 2023 book, is being adapted by writer-director Scott Cooper, best known for his 2009 musical drama Crazy Heart, which won Jeff Bridges the best-actor Oscar.
Both Springsteen and his manager Jon Landau (who called Zane’s tome “one of the best books ever written” about Springsteen) will be involved in developing the film, which 20th Century and Disney have acquired. It will reportedly feature music from The River, Nebraska and Born in the USA.
Nebraska, Springsteen’s folk-rooted sixth album, was recorded at a critical juncture in the musician’s career. It was early 1982, and he was on the cusp of becoming one of the biggest rock acts in the world, having concluding a year-long 140-show tour with his E-Street Band in support of his first number-one album, 1980s The River.
Springsteen rented a lake house in Colts Neck, New Jersey and tasked his guitar tech, Mike Batlan, with buying a simple tape recorder so that he could experiment new songs and arrangements without having to rent a studio. This Teac cassette recorder, the first of its kind capable of multi-track recording, became the primary tool used to record the album.
The songs on Nebraska, which were heavily inspired by the New York City synth-punk band Suicide (Springsteen would later go on to cover their hit ‘Dream Baby Dream’) were initially supposed to be demos. However, after attempting studio work with the E Street Band to expand the music, Springsteen and Landau agreed that the raw, sparse originals were the definitive versions.
In a statement announcing 20th Century and Disney’s boarding, director Cooper said that the film has “the potential to be a transformative cinematic experience.”
“I once read that Nebraska is an album that moves you to the marrow of your bones. I couldn’t agree more,” he said. “Bruce Springsteen, and Nebraska, in particular, have had a profound impact on me and my work. Through themes of despair, disillusionment, and the struggles of everyday Americans, Bruce has formed an unparalleled legacy, painting an unflinching portrait of the human condition. Yet, amid the darkness, a sense of resilience and a sense of hope shines through, reflecting an indomitable spirit.”