DiCaprio and Warner Bros. both pass on Alan Turing biopic, 'The Imitation Game'

What was once looking like one of the more promising pictures of the upcoming year now may be dead in the water. Warner Bros. had picked up the rights to The Imitation Game, a biopic on renowned cryptographer and mathematician, Alan Turing, who helped the British crack German codes during WWII. The project had Leonardo DiCaprio circling the lead role, and earlier this year gained J. Blakeson(The Disappearance of Alice Creed) as a director. With a Black List script by Graham Moore, adapted from Andrew Hodges' 1983 novel, the studio snatched up the film at a hefty 7-figure sum.

But now THR reports that Leonardo DiCaprio has passed on starring in the film, which in turn has caused Warner Bros. to back out as well. A film based on the mostly unknown Turing was always going to be a big risk, and without DiCaprio's star power it was going to be an even tougher sell. The project still has Blakeson on board, and can now be shopped to other studios. I wouldn't be totally surprised to see a smaller, more indie-oriented studio scoop it up as it has definite prestige potential.

Turing's story is one worthy of being told, with great displays of genius and national loyalty, which were then met by suspicion and betrayal. During WWII he helped in the Allied victory over the Axis Powers by cracking the German Engima codes. Later in life, Turing was convicted of indecency for engaging in a homosexual relationship. The conviction caused him to lose his security clearance, thus destroying his career, and the punishment was to undergo "chemical castration" for over a year, rendering him impotent. Turing would soon after commit suicide via cyanide poisoning.

Warner Bros. was so excited for the film at first that it seems odd they'd drop out so quickly, but that initial enthusiasm is also why I think we'll see The Imitation Game turn up elsewhere.