Love Simon director Greg Berlanti has signed on to direct a film about the life of Hollywood icon Rock Hudson. The new movie from Universal Pictures will be based on the book All That Heaven Allows by Mark Griffin.

Hudson was a massive Hollywood star in the 1950’s and 60’s. The heart-throb actor kept his homosexuality hidden out of fear it would ruin his career.

In the early 1950’s his agent kept stories out about him being gay out of the press by trading revelations about lesser successful clients. Shortly after avoiding the tabloid scandals Hudson married his agent’s secretary to keep up the pretense that he was straight.

In the 1970’s he moved into television staring in the series McMillan and Wife and appearing on the hit TV show Dynasty. In 1984 speculation about the actors health surfaced after he appeared at an event looking extremely gaunt. His publicist denied that the actor had contracted HIV.

Hudson passed away in 1985, and it was revealed that he had died as a result of opportunistic infections related to the virus. He became one of the first high profile AIDS related deaths.

There’s no indication on when the project might make it to the big screen, Berlanti has no shortage of project to work on including his many television series that are currently screening.

OIP Staff