‘Punisher: War Zone’ Director Lexi Alexander Boards Chris Benoit Biopic ‘Crossface’
German helmer Lexi Alexander has come on board to direct “Crossface,” a biopic about late wresting champ Chris Benoit.
Producers are Alex A. Ginzburg and Tony Lee of Let It Play. Ram Getz and Matthew Randazzo V are exec producing.
Alexander will direct from a script by Jake Goldberger and Sarah Coulter. The project is based on Randazzo’s book “Ring of Hell: The Story of Chris Benoit & the Fall of the Pro Wrestling Industry.” The movie’s title is taken from Benoit’s trademark “crippler crossface” wrestling hold.
Benoit was a respected wrestler who murdered his wife and son before taking his own life in 2007. He was posthumously diagnosed with Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE), a progressive degenerative disease caused by severe or repeated blows to the head.
Alexander, best known for directing “Punisher: War Zone,” received an Academy Award nomination for her short film “Johnny Flynton.” Her film “Green Street Hooligans,” starring Elijah Wood and Charlie Hunnam, won South by Southwest’s best of fest and a special jury awards in 2005.
She has also directed episodes of the TV series “Limitless,” “Supergirl,” and “Arrow.”
“I was pretty certain I’d stay in TV rather than returning to the feature world, because the material just seems so much better in TV, especially in drama, but then ‘Crossface’ came my way,” Alexander said. “A heartbreaking, true story about the dark side of wrestling. … I couldn’t say no to that.”
Alexander is also a former World Karate Association world champion.
Ginzburg and Lee’s producing credits include Lee Kirk’s upcoming film “Geezer,” starring Billie Joe Armstrong, Selma Blair, and Judy Greer; and Jake Goldberger’s “Holding Patterns,” starring Freddie Highmore, Odeya Rush, and Christopher Meloni.
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