Dev Patel has been finalised as the main lead for the long-gestating Chippendales murder movie, revolving around the scandal surrounding the iconic male strip club franchise. Patel is set to play the Bombay-born entrepreneur Somen 'Steve' Banerjee, who bought a struggling LA club in the '70s and turned it into the multi-million dollar Chippendales franchise, the first male strip club chain in the United States.
The true-crime drama will reportedly be helmed by I, Tonya director Craig Gillespie, who is also directing the upcoming Cruella movie, a live-action take on the classic Disney villain Cruella De Ville starring Emma Stone. The yet-to-be-titled Chippendales movie follows the true story of Banerjee, an Indian immigrant who was at a certain point earning $8 million a year and eventually built a strip tease empire. When his co-creator Paul Snider murders associate girlfriend Dorothy Stratten and then commits suicide, Banerjee gets entangled in a web of legal battles.
Moreover, Banerjee hired hitmen to eliminate Chippendale's competitors, and also allegedly set up the murder of his company's choreographer Nick De Noia. Ben Stiller was at one point being considered to play De Noia, but he has since moved on, leaving the role open.