Alexander McQueen was something of a movie buff. The late visionary often drew inspiration from major cinema moments, adapting them for his own theatrical runways. Fall/winter 93 explored Robert De Niro’s role in Martin Scorsese’s Taxi Driver, spring/summer 03 considered Sydney Pollack’s They Shoot Horses, Don’t They?, and spring/summer 05 saw references to Peter Weir’s Picnic at Hanging Rock. Now, McQueen’s own life will be adapted to the silver screen.
According to a report published by Deadline Hollywood this morning, a McQueen biopic is in the works, and it will be directed by 45 Years‘ Andrew Haigh. Deadline reports that the film’s co-producer, Damian Jones, had once optioned Andrew Wilson’s biography, Alexander McQueen: Blood Beneath The Skin, for a filmic adaptation. But Haigh’s forthcoming project won’t be entirely based on the biography: screenwriter Chris Urch will reportedly conduct additional research into the life of Lee McQueen — the East London-born son of a cab driver who profoundly altered the landscape of fashion with his unflinching dark fantasies.
Of course, a McQueen biopic was only a matter of time. The film follows a separate London-based theater project, McQueen, as well as the continued success of blockbuster retrospective exhibition Savage Beauty. Though not a documentary, the McQueen film arrives as more and more fashion figures enjoy the silver screen spotlight: Raf Simons, Valentino, Bill Cunningham, Iris Apfel, and Diana Vreeland have all been the subjects of recent and outstanding documentary projects.
According to Deadline, the aim is to get the film into production by the end of the year, though a spokesperson for the brand declined to comment.
Credits
Text Emily Manning
Photography Corinne Day
[The Graduate Issue, No. 223, September 2002]