SmashMouth

Michael Lewis famously beat the odds when the former beer truck driver earned a tryout, and eventually a roster spot, with his hometown New Orleans Saints, where he proceeded to set records as a kick return specialist. Now, after conquering the NFL, the relentless Lewis is making a run at a new, equally lofty target: Hollywood.

Lewis, a fan favorite known among the Saints faithful as "The Beer Man," has signed a deal to develop his underdog story into a movie.



Local filmmaker and screenwriter David DuBos ("Delta Justice: The Isleños Trapper War") has been hired to write the film, with the hope of having the project ready to go before cameras as early as winter 2019, said Karl Bernard, Lewis' longtime attorney and agent.

"I think anybody who has any dream larger than themselves will be inspired by the Michael Lewis story," Bernard said late Tuesday afternoon (June 18) in confirming the deal. "He's an incredible individual, an incredible athlete, an American story come to life right before our eyes in the city of New Orleans."

The film, which is still early in development, doesn't yet have a title or a distributor, but both Bernard and DuBos said they're convinced Lewis' inspirational life story -- which he told in his 2014 autobiography, "Dreams: The Michael Lewis Story" -- is just the sort of thing that will catch on with audiences.

Most Saints fans know the basics: A Grace King High School product gifted with uncommon speed and elusiveness -- but lacking the prototypical NFL frame or significant football experience -- Lewis passed on going to college and instead began driving a Budweiser delivery route to provide for his young family. He also harbored dreams of playing football, however, and after a series of semipro stints and a couple of NFL tryouts, he caught on as a free agent with his hometown Saints in 2001.

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