The folks at THR tell us that Chris Hanley and Edward Pressman, the producers of 2000’s American Psycho, have re-optioned the rights to Richard Hammer‘s 1982 book The Vatican Connection. Hanley, John Penotti, Jeff Most, and Bob DeBrino will be producing the adaptation, with Pressman serving as executive producer.
The nonfiction book follows the work of New York City police detective Joseph Coffey, whose career-long war against the Mafia led to the uncovering of a billion-dollar counterfeit stocks and bonds scam, one which connected the Mafia to the Vatican of Pope Paul VI, all through Italian banker Roberto Calvi. Calvi‘s bank was later shut down in the early 1980s, after 1.3 billion dollars went missing and his body was found hanging under a London bridge. Whether it was a suicide or a murder… that’s still up for debate. The producers are planning to reframe the real-life story into that of a thriller, so expect some dramatization to spice things up.
I’m completely and totally on board for The Vatican Connection, simply because it’s an interesting story that would make for a tremendous thriller if done right. (It’ll probably also piss off a fair amount of people, too, and that’s always fun.) I’ll be keeping my eye on this one. Plus, Hanley and Pressman have good taste (you’ve undoubtedly seen American Psycho), so their judgment is okay by me.
Have you read The Vatican Connection? Is there potential for a film?