Actress Elizabeth Banks reportedly will play tennis star Billy Jean King in an HBO film about the historic “battle of the sexes” match against Bobby Riggs, who will be played by Paul Giamatti.
The film hasn’t been named. David Auburn will write the script, and Tom Hanks and Gary Goetzman will serve as executive producers
along with Banks and Max Handelman, Variety reported.
King was 29 when she defeated Riggs, a 55-year-old former Wimbledon champion, in the 1973 match. A former tennis pro
told ESPN in 2013 that Riggs threw the match to wipe out a gambling debt.
Chernin Entertainment and Gary Sanchez Productions are planning another film — “Match Maker,” starring Will Ferrell —
based on the ESPN article, Deadline reported.
At the time of the match, Riggs made sexist remarks to the press and was pulled into the stadium on a rickshaw. The televised match drew widespread attention and was watched by about 100 million people.
The match, which remains the most-watched tennis match in history, was the subject of a 2001 made-for-TV movie "When Billie Beat Bobby," starring Holly Hunter and Ron Silver.
Twitter users commented about the role.
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