Emile Hirsch Cast as John Belushi in Upcoming Biopic

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After months of speculation over who would play late John Belushi in director Steve Conrad's yet-untitled biopic, Film 360 announced that 28-year-old Emile Hirsch has signed on to portray the iconic comedian.

The biopic has long been under development, yet it only recently picked up momentum when Conrad joined the project as both writer and director. Conrad is already an acclaimed talent in his own right, having written The Pursuit of Happyness, The Weather Man, and Ben Stiller’s upcoming The Secret Life of Walter Mitty, which is gaining considerable Oscar buzz.

John Belushi was just 33 years old when he died of an overdose at the Chateau Marmont in Los Angeles in 1982. However, he was already a well-known name, not only as one of the original castmembers of Saturday Night Live but as the star of such classic comedies as The Blues Brothers and Animal House.

Of course, Hirsch himself isn't new to the biopic genre: he played late traveler Christopher McCandless in 2007's Into the Wild, and portrayed AIDS activist Cleve Jones in the Oscar-winning 2008 film Milk.

Conrad is adapting the screenplay from a book by Tanner Colby and Belushi’s widow Judith Belushi Pisano. The movie is expected to shoot in spring 2014.

Via: Entertainment Weekly