Hashishi

Batman's War on Drugs
Bale, Bardem set for Killing Pablo.
10-2-`07 | UK.IGN.com

Javier Bardem and Christian Bale will lead the cast of Killing Pablo, the long-planned film about the search for prolific Colombian drug lord Pablo Escobar. Yari Film Group is putting the movie, based on the novel of the same name by Black Hawk Down author Mark Bowden, on the fast track.

Variety reveals that Bale is in talks to play Major Steve Jacoby, the Delta Force commander who led the hunt for Escobar (Bardem).

Smokin' Aces helmer Joe Carnahan will direct and has written the script from an early draft by the author.

Killing Pablo may start shooting as early as next June if the Screen Actors Guild has reached a deal by then and does not go on strike.

The adaptation has been in the works since 2001, and Bardem was first linked to the Escobar role in 2003. Throughout the film's development, Antonio Banderas had also been linked to a role, but he is likely no longer involved.

The movie tracks the hunt for ruthless drug dealer and terrorist Pablo Escobar who was one of the wealthiest men in the world at the height of his power. United States and Columbian special forces, as well as a fringe group of vigilantes known as Los Pepes, began attempting to bring Escobar down in the early 1990s. The search culminated in a bloody shootout on the rooftops of Medellin.

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