Los Angeles Dodgers star Yasiel Puig is the latest modern athlete to have his life story developed as a major motion picture following Kurt Warner, Jesse Holley and Josh Hamilton, TheWrap has learned.
Brett Ratner and James Packer‘s RatPac Entertainment has acquired rights to “Escape From Cuba: Yasiel Puig’s Untold Journey to the Dodgers,” an article by Jesse Katz that ran in Los Angeles Magazine earlier this month.
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Puig’s journey to the big leagues is certainly fascinating. He escaped Cuba with the help of a Mexican drug cartel that picked him up in a speed boat and took him to the Yucatan Peninsula. He was then held captive for nearly three weeks as the cartel waited to receive payment.
Puig went on to sign a seven-year, $42 million contract with the Dodgers, though media reports have suggested that Puig promised 20% of his earnings to those who enabled his escape from Cuba.
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Ratner will produce with Beau Flynn, while Packer will executive produce with RatPac’s John Cheng.