Ryan Gosling lands Neil Armstrong role

  • 30/12/2016
Ryan Gosling to play Neil Armstrong in Damien Chazelle biopic First Man
Ryan Gosling; Neil Armstrong (Reuters)

The filmmaker behind critical hits La La Land and Whiplash is reuniting with Ryan Gosling for a Neil Armstrong biopic.

Damien Chazelle will direct First Man for Universal Pictures, with a script from Spotlight's Josh Singer, based on the book First Man: A Life of Neil A. Armstrong by James Hansen.

Gosling has reportedly been attached to the project since late 2015, but only inked a deal to star in the film this month.

First Man will centre on Armstrong, but will reportedly also explore the sacrifices and cost of NASA's nearly decade-long quest to put a human on the moon.

Neil A. Armstrong in the Lunar Module on the moon
Neil Armstrong in the Lunar Module on the moon in 1969

After serving as a Navy pilot in World War II, Armstrong joined the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics - the precursor to NASA - as a test pilot and engineer.

On July 21, 1969, he became the first person to walk on the moon as part of the Apollo 11 mission.

First Man is scheduled for production in 2017.

Newshub.