Anthony Hopkins as Papa?

By Rob Christopher in Arts & Entertainment on Mar 26, 2009 9:00PM

Anthony Hopkins has already played a butler, Picasso and a serial killer. And now he's set to play Ernest Hemingway.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, Hemingway & Fuentes will be directed by Anthony Garcia. It'll center on Papa's friendship with Gregorio Fuentes, a fisherman whom Hemingway used as a model for the main character of his novel The Old Man and the Sea. Garcia also plans to star as Fuentes, and is co-writing the script with Hilary Hemingway, the famous author's niece. He previously directed The Lost City, which was not well-received.

Hemingway actually has a pretty spotty history when it comes to the silver screen. For every To Have and Have Not, there's a howler like In Love and War. Yes, Chris O'Donnell as Ernest Hemingway. Let's hope Sir Anthony fares better.

Hemingway, of course, was born in Oak Park in 1899 and lived there until he was 20. The Ernest Hemingway Foundation is a great place to visit to learn more about his Chicago-area roots; we highly recommend the guided walking-tour. And they tweet!

image via Library of Congress