Ronald Reagan Feature Film in Works

Ronald Reagan's life story is headed for the silver screen. The life of the 40th president, from his childhood to his acting career to his ascension to leader of the free world, will be told in a $30 million movie to be released late next year, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

Called "Reagan," the film will be based on Paul Kengor's two best-selling biographies of the former president: "God and Ronald Reagan" and "The Crusader."

The feature film promises to be vastly different from the less-than-flattering 2003 "The Reagans" miniseries starring James Brolin. That series was to be shown on CBS until controversy erupted over its left-leaning portrayal of Reagan. "The Reagans" eventually was aired to a much smaller audience on the Showtime cable outlet.

"Only in Hollywood could you make an insulting, condescending movie about a much-loved historical figure, hire an actor who loathes the man, watch it flop, and then somehow conclude that Americans don't want to see a movie about him," Mark Joseph, co-producer of the new Reagan film, told The Hollywood Reporter. "I watched Americans line up and wait for 10 hours for the simple privilege of passing by his closed casket. They love this man."