A Third Benghazi Movie Is In The Works

It seems Benghazi is Hollywood's new favorite hot topic. Alcon Entertainment has put into development Zero Footprint, a new drama about the 2012 attack on the American diplomatic compound in Libya. That makes three Benghazi movies in the works at this moment. More on the new Benghazi movie after the jump. 

Deadline reports Alcon has picked up the Zero Footprint spec script by Scott Charnick, Charley Parlapanides, and Vlas Parlapanides. Told from the perspective of an anonymous (but real) ex-Special Forces operative, it'll chronicle the events leading up to the attack.

If you follow the news at all, you've heard the basics of the Benghazi attack already. On September 11, 2012, the U.S. mission in Beghazi, Libya came under fire, as did a nearby CIA annex. Four Americans were killed in total, including a U.S. ambassador, as were about 100 attackers.

The incident sparked controversy in the U.S. over the causes of the attack (not the Innocence of Muslims video, it turned out), the government's preparations (or lack thereof), and the government's response to the tragedy. Public figures politicized the attack, and then loudly criticized their opponents for politicizing the attack.

Despite the contentiousness of the subject, studios are racing to be first out with a Benghazi pic. The furthest ahead right now seems to be Paramount's 13 Hours, which has Michael Bay set to direct with John Krasinski starring. Chuck Hogan wrote the script based on the book by Mitchell Zuckoff. Shooting begins next month.

Last month, Relativity got going on its own untitled Benghazi film, picking up life rights to the CIA contractors and former Navy SEALS Glen Doherty and Tyrone S. Woods — the two Americans killed at the CIA annex. Dana Brunetti is producing and Matt Sand is writing the script, which has been likened to Syriana.

Alcon co-founder and co-CEO Broderick Johnson elaborated on the premise of Zero Footprint:

There are a lot of different things that were going on in the region at the time. This story was one of several missions that led up to these events. This is the behind the scenes story of why this all happened.

Given the sensitivity of the topic, Alcon's other co-founder and co-CEO Andrew Kosove stressed that they're moving forward with care:

This about why it happened and the siege of the embassy is the last part of the third act. This is about everything that led up to that attack. We talked about this from a timing standpoint. We are not trying to throw anyone under the bus politically. There are secrets and there are secrets that need to be kept for national security. We are looking carefully at the timing of the release.

To that end, Deadline says, they're considering following in Zero Dark Thirty's footsteps and waiting until the dust has settled. Which is especially convenient, because no directors or stars are attached at this time.