Despite leading him to an Oscar win, David O. Russell has lost his Fighter star Christian Bale for his next drama. Previously titled American Bullshit, the film was set to feature The Dark Knight Rises star, alongside Russell’s upcoming Silver Linings star Bradley Cooper. But now there’s a change of plans.

Instead, Variety reports that Jeremy Renner – whose The Bourne Legacy was forced to move because of Bale’s blockbuster – is now set for the lead role in the film being financed by Megan Ellison‘s Annapurna Pictures. There’s no reason why Bale dropped, as he only has Terrence Malick‘s Knight of Cups and Lawless to shoot this year. Production for this one begins in February, when Bale’s schedule is currently open — so unless he simply needs a break, hopefully we’ll hear what he’s headed to instead.

Scripted by Eric Warren Singer (The International), the story focuses on Abscam, an actual, joint operation between the FBI and conman Melvin Weinberg (Cooper), the latter of whom helped organize a sting operation wherein several politicians thought they were working in conjunction with a sheikh — for their own financial gain, of course. Several politicians got arrested, and now there’s a movie coming more than 30 years later. Renner would play Jimmy Boyle, the lead FBI agent in charge of the operation.

Expect a late 2013 release for this film, while Russell’s The Silver Linings Playbook arrives this November.

Is The Hurt Locker star a strong replacement for Bale?