Andrew Garfield is reportedly set to play British billionaire and entrepreneur Richard Branson in a brand-new limited series titled Hot Air.
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Deadline first reported that Garfield will portray Branson in the limited series, which is based on Martyn Gregory's book Dirty Tricks: British Airways' Secret War Against Virgin Atlantic.
The book tells the story of the rise of Virgin Airways, which within six years of launch grew massively to threaten British Airways' dominance over the industry.
The blurb for the book says: "Richard Branson's Virgin Atlantic was valued at over £1.2 billion when he sold a 49% stake to Singapore Airlines in 1999. This was an extraordinary achievement for an airline that began life in 1984 with one plane. Virgin Atlantic became one of the world's top airlines only after surviving an incredible dirty tricks campaign by British Airways."
Sir Richard Branson Steven Lawton/FilmMagic/Getty
The series, which is reportedly set for streaming but doesn't yet have an attached platform, comes from Universal International Studios and Deadline reports that it will be directed by David Leitch, who has been behind films Deadpool 2 and Brad Pitt's upcoming Bullet Train. They also report that the series will be written by Paddington 2 scribe Jon Croker.
Garfield most recent starring role is in limited series Under the Banner of Heaven, which has already premiered in the US on Hulu but is set to hit Disney Plus in the UK on 27th July.
It sees the star portray Detective Jeb Pyre, who investigates the murder of a Mormon mother and her baby daughter that seems to involve the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. It is based on the real life events detailed in Jon Krakauer's book Under the Banner of Heaven: A Story of Violent Faith.
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James Hibbs is a Drama Writer for Radio Times, covering programmes across both streaming platforms and linear channels. He previously worked in PR, first for a B2B agency and subsequently for international TV production company Fremantle. He possesses a BA in English and Theatre Studies and an NCTJ Level 5 Diploma in Journalism.
