Paramount Pictures has acquired rights to "The Romantic", a romantic comedy spec from Deborah Kaplan and Harry Elfont, with Dave Bautista attached to star.
"The Romantic" is centered around bestselling romance author Francine London, who has a secret: she’s a six-foot-four mountain of a man named Ed Schwenke.
When Ed’s identity comes under scrutiny, he hires a wildcard of a woman to pose as Francine at a romance fiction convention, while evading a cynical female journalist, who hates romance even more than she hates liars.
Maximum Effort will produce under its first-look deal with the studio, alongside Bautista’s Dogbone Entertainment.
No director is attached at present.
Bautista has spoken for years about his desire to star in a rom-com.
In a 2023 interview with Page Six, he said, “I know I’m not your typical rom-com lead. I’m a little rough around the edges. But I always, you know, I look in the mirror and I say, I ask myself, ‘Am I that unattractive? Is there something that unappealing about me that excludes me from these parts?'”.
The Dune and Guardians of the Galaxy star added that while he’s “never had an offer to do a rom-com,” he had “high hopes” about checking this off his bucket list and would “keep searching” until he found the right opportunity.
Currently weighing an offer for a role in "Road House 2" at Amazon MGM, Bautista will next be seen starring in the Aura Entertainment actioner "Trap House", as well as the Amazon MGM buddy cop action comedy "The Wrecking Crew" opposite Jason Momoa, both of which are produced by his Dogbone Entertainment Banner.
Recently seen starring opposite Pamela Anderson in the critically acclaimed drama "The Last Showgirl", he also has the Zellner Brothers’ alien invasion comedy "Alpha Gang" coming up.
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