In the last few years Will Ferrell has been trying to mix big, broad mainstream comedies with more interesting indie fare (much of which have bombed spectacularly at the box office, but never mind). Now he’s circling another movie being made outside the studio system, as he may play legendary b-movie director filmmaker Russ Meyer  in the film Russ & Roger Go Beyond, according to Deadline.

The film is based on how Meyer – who’s best known for soft-core erotic films such as Faster, Pussycat! Kill! Kill! – was offered the chance to direct Beyond the Valley of the Dolls by 20th Century Fox.

Meyer agreed, but only under the condition that Roger Ebert, who was then a relatively minor film critic at the Chicago Sun Times, was hired to write the script, partly because Ebert wrote one of the few positive reviews of Meyer’s work.

Unsurprisingly the unconventional and non-Hollywood pairing had huge struggles working within the studio system and with the ratings board, who weren’t impressed by the movie’s sexy shenanigans. It became one of the few major studio releases that was released with an X rating, but the filmmakers were eventually vindicated when it became a profitable hit.

The project doesn’t have a director attached yet, although Edgar Wright has been rumoured, while actors such as Jonah Hill and Seth Rogen are said to be interested in playing Ebert.

It’s the season for Will Ferrell to attach himself to new movies. He’s already added his name to a couple of project in the last few weeks, and now Deadline reports that Tri-Star Pictures has picked up the comedy pitch The Yank, which has Ferrell attached to star.

Steve Pink and Jeff Morris are set to write the script, which is about a timid insurance courier (Will Ferrell) who gets caught up in a plot to steal the Britich Crown Jewels in London.

It’s early days for the film at the moment as it’s only at the pitch stage and no director is currently attached.
The project doesn’t have a director attached at this time.

Unsurprisingly it’s not known when it will shoot.

Last year the documentary Battle Of The Sexes looked at the 1970s ‘Battle Of The Sexes’ tennis match, which Bobby Riggs take on Billie Jean King to test his theory that even a retired male tennis pro would be better than the world’s best woman. That doc has certainly ignited interest in taking the story to the big screen.

A couple of months ago it was revealed that Danny Boyle was looking into making a movie about the match, but now it’s got some competition as Variety reports that Will Ferrell has signed up to play Riggs in a rival movie called Match Maker.

This one is a comedy with a script by Steve Conrad (Walter Mitty), based on a 2013 ESPN article, ‘The Match Maker: Bobby Riggs, the Mafia and the Battle of the Sexes’.

It follows self-proclaimed chauvinist Riggs, who in the early 70s declared that the female game was inferior and that a top woman player couldn’t beat him even at the age of 55. To prove his point he challenged King to a match, but she declined. Margaret Court, who was then the top female player in the world agreed to take him on. She lost in straight sets, seemingly confirming Riggs’ claims.

King wasn’t going to stand for that and agreed to play Bobby in what became a nationally televised media sensation watched by over 50 million viewers.

Ferrell is a passionate tennis fan, so it wasn’t to tough to convince him to take the role.