American Sniper star Bradley Cooper will make his directorial debut with A Star Is Born, and a new report from Deadline reveals that singer turned award winning actress Lady Gaga (American Horror Story) looks set to join him. Beyonce was originally up for the role a while back, but negotiations with the “Poker Face” singer look set to begin soon.
As the trade points out, Lady Gaga’s involvement guarantees that A Star Is Born will have a killer soundtrack, but it will also be interesting to see how Cooper fares in the director’s chair. The actor and producer worked on the screenplay with Will Fetters, which will have Gaga playing a young woman whose dreams of stardom are helped by a self-destructive icon whose best days are behind him (Cooper). A few different versions of A Star Is Born have been made in the past, with various iterations hitting the big screen in 1937, 1954, and 1976.
Warner Bros. has been looking to get a contemporary version off the ground for years now, and everyone from Tom Cruise to Christian Bale and Leonardo DiCaprio were all approached for the lead role at various stages.
Now, the studio is hoping that Cooper will deliver something special for them, and if he follows in the footsteps of actor turned director Ben Affleck, we could be looking at an awards contender here. Time will obviously tell on that front, but expect more casting news for A Star Is Born over the coming weeks and months.