Here’s hoping this news isn’t a hustle. Bradley Cooper, who’s pretty busy these days being an Oscar-nominated in-demand movie star, is gearing up to take a break from Hollywood to bring The Elephant Man back to Broadway.
Although plans for a fall 2013 run never materialized, the American Hustle headliner told the Daily Mail that the show is a go once he finishes filming his leading role in Clint Eastwood's American Sniper.
Under Scott Ellis' direction, Cooper previously played John Merrick (based on real-life 19th Century freak show survivor Joseph Merrick) in Bernard Pomerance’s play for two weeks at the Williamstown Theatre Festival in 2012. Oscar nominee Patricia Clarkson and Tony winner Shuler Hensley were also featured in the cast.
The Tony-winning play premiered on Broadway in 1979 with Philip Anglim as Merrick. David Bowie, Bruce Davison and Mark Hamill (!) also played the role during the show’s two-year run. Billy Crudup earned a Tony nomination when he headlined a short-lived 2002 revival.
As you probably remember, a way-less-famous Cooper made his Broadway debut in 2006 opposite Julia Roberts and Paul Rudd in Three Days of Rain. As you probably forgot, he won a Broadway.com Audience Choice Award for his performance.
Who needs an Oscar?