Angelina Jolie is to direct a “sweeping epic” film about veteran Kenyan conservationist Richard Leakey’s fight with ivory poachers, the studio behind the movie said Friday.
The Oscar-winning actress — whose latest film as director, “Unbroken,” is out in December — will go behind the camera once again for “Africa,” with a screenplay by another Oscar winner, Eric Roth.
“I’ve felt a deep connection to Africa and its culture for much of my life,” Jolie said, praising “Forrest Gump” writer Roth’s “beautiful” script.
The film is about “a man drawn into the violent conflict with elephant poachers, who emerged with a deeper understanding of man’s footprint and a profound sense of responsibility for the world around him,” she said.
Leakey, 69, former head of the government’s Kenya Wildlife Service, was key in stemming the rampant poaching of the late 1980s, using extreme measures including sending helicopter gunships into national parks.
– the-star.co.ke
