Austin Butler has signed on to play disgraced cycling legend Lance Armstrong in a new biopic to be directed by Oscar-winning "Conclave" filmmaker Edward Berger, with the package now sparking a heated bidding war among major studios and streamers.

The untitled project is being shopped around Hollywood as a high-profile package led by Butler, who broke out playing Elvis Presley in Baz Luhrmann's 2022 musical drama "Elvis." Berger, who won an Academy Award for All Quiet on the Western Front and later directed the Vatican thriller "Conclave," will oversee the film, which is being described as an ambitious look at Armstrong's rise, fall, and lasting impact on the sport of cycling.

Producers have secured the official life rights to Armstrong's story, marking the first time a feature film about him will move forward with his full cooperation, although he is not expected to receive a producer credit, according to Deadline.

The script is being written by Zach Baylin, the Oscar-nominated screenwriter behind King Richard, adding further awards pedigree to the project. Veteran producer Scott Stuber, formerly the head of Netflix's film division and now working under an exclusive deal with Amazon's United Artists, is producing alongside Nick Nesbit and Berger, while Baylin, Josh Glick, and Zac Frognowski will serve as executive producers.

Because development on the Armstrong film began before Stuber's United Artists agreement, the package is being actively pitched across the industry rather than automatically landing at Amazon MGM Studios, fueling competitive offers from multiple buyers.

Armstrong's story offers a dramatic mix of triumph and scandal that has long attracted filmmakers. Born in Texas, he became a dominant force in professional cycling, returning from a life‑threatening testicular cancer diagnosis in the late 1990s to win the Tour de France seven straight times and front the hugely visible Livestrong charity campaign.

Those victories and his cancer-survivor image turned him into one of the most famous athletes in the world, with endorsements, media appearances, and even film cameos.

That legacy collapsed after the United States Anti-Doping Agency concluded in 2012 that Armstrong had used performance-enhancing drugs and led a sophisticated doping program, which led to a lifetime ban and the stripping of his Tour titles. He later publicly admitted to blood doping, a confession that cemented his downfall and changed how many fans and officials viewed an entire era of cycling.

The new film is expected to explore both his inspirational comeback and the deception that followed, with insiders comparing its planned tone to high-energy sports dramas and morally complex character studies such as "Raging Bull" and "The Wolf of Wall Street."

Armstrong's life has been portrayed on screen before, notably in the 2015 drama "The Program," in which Ben Foster played the cyclist without Armstrong's involvement, but that film drew limited attention.

With Butler attached, Berger directing, and the subject offering unprecedented access, the upcoming biopic is being positioned as the most comprehensive big-screen examination yet of Armstrong's controversial career. A title, production start date, and release plan have not yet been announced.

Tags
Austin butler, Lance armstrong, Biopic