Oscar winner Jared Leto is set to produce and star in a film about the acclaimed fashion designer Karl Lagerfeld, who died in February 2019.
Leto and Emma Ludbrook will produce via their production company Paradox along with the House of Karl Lagerfeld, whose long-serving CEO Pier Paolo Righi will executive produce alongside Lagerfeld’s other trusted confidants, Caroline Lebar and Sébastien Jondeau.
Lebar spent more than 35 years advising Lagerfeld on his brand and personal communications, while Jondeau spent 20 years as the designer’s personal assistant and bodyguard before pivoting into the role of Style Consultant for the brand.
The film is expected to be an unconventional biopic, as Lagerfeld himself was unconventional. Leto and his fellow producers are currently seeking a director for the project. Leto is a strong choice to play the eccentric designer and fits in line with some of his recent choices.
“Karl has always been an inspiration to me. He was a true polymath, an artist, an innovator, a leader, and, most importantly, a kind man,” Leto said in a statement. “When we came together with the Karl Lagerfeld team, we immediately shared a creative vision of doing a respectful ode to Karl while pushing the artistic boundaries of what a biopic can be. I’m so grateful to Karo, Pier, and Seb for allowing us to go on this journey together.”
“Over the years, we have been approached by several Hollywood producers who suggested [partnering] on a movie about Karl’s iconic life. It has been only since we met Jared and Emma that we felt truly confident about the story being told in the artistic way Karl would have loved to see,” Righi said in a statement. “Throughout our conversations, we have created an equally trustful and inspiring creative relationship that will allow us to work together very fluidly on this beautiful project.”
Lagerfeld was recently announced as the theme of the 2023 Costume Institute Exhibition and Met Gala in tribute to his six-decade career, his unique creative process, the evolution of his designs, and his everlasting impact on fashion.
Leto and Paradox are represented by WME.
