P.T. Barnum and ‘Showman’ — Hugh Jackman’s Oscar shot?

I don’t know why this came to mind so quickly.  There is no director yet and the screenplay is yet to be hammered out, but I couldn’t help but wonder, with the announcement of the P.T. Barnum biopic “The Greatest Showman on Earth,” whether Hugh Jackman might finally find himself in the awards hunt for a change.

I don’t mean to boil a simple news item down to an awards angle, which can be a knee-jerk reaction to this stuff in this racket.  But really, can anyone think of a more suitable role for Jackman?  Maybe it’ll just end up being fluff, I don’t know.  But there’s a real opportunity here.

The film is apparently part of a string of musicals Jackman and partner John Palermo plan to usher to the screens, as the genre attempts to make a valiant comeback.  And now’s as good a time as any for frothy entertainment to capture the public’s imagination.  “The Sound of Music” won the big award during some dreary times, after all.  And the script is taking the old school route, written with actors in mind throughout.  Anne Hathaway (who you’ll recall held her own quite well opposite Jackman on Oscar’s stage back in February) will co-star.

Here’s a taste of Michael Fleming’s Variety story:

Twentieth Century Fox has attached Hugh Jackman to play American showman P.T. Barnum in “The Greatest Showman on Earth,” an original contemporary musical to be scripted by Jenny Bicks (“Sex and the City”).

The film will be produced by Laurence Mark (“Dreamgirls”), Jackman and his Seed partner John Palermo. It is an outgrowth of their work together on the 81st Academy Awards, on which Jackman was host, Mark was exec producer, and Bicks was part of the Emmy-nominated writing team.

Jackman will play the showman with a penchant for hoaxing a gullible public as he creates the three-ring circus that made him famous. The musical also focuses on his infatuation with singer Jenny Lind — the so-called Swedish Nightingale.

Read the rest here.