Siegfried and Roy are getting biopic’d

Last Updated on July 31, 2021

It was only a matter of time before the biopic machine turned its focus on famed Vegas magicians Siegfried and Roy, whose act was built upon the appearance of white tigers and ultimately came to an end as a result, too. The only surprise is that it has taken this long for someone to get around to it, with THE PHYSICIAN's Philipp Stolzl signing on to direct from a script written by Jan Berger for the German studio UFA Fiction. I mean, their careers were abruptly halted by an on-stage tiger attack in 2003. That was really the height of any interest as to who these two guys are and how they got to this point in their lives. This thing should have been fast-tracked then. 

But with some distance from that defining incident, Stozl has some ideas on how to attack (no pun intended) the story of these two performers now. 

The image of Siegfried and Roy floating down onto the stage in their fantastical outfits, landing amidst a pack of snow-white tigers, has been burned into my mind since I was a boy. It was truly out of this world. Being able to tell the story of Siegfried and Roy, covering all their successes, desires and dreams, is a wonderful gift that comes with a special set of challenges for me as a director.

To be fair, I don't believe much is known about the rise of Siegfried and Roy, so perhaps this could make for an interesting tale of how two dudes got together from their humble German beginnings and became one of the most popular Vegas magic acts in history. Casting is going to be key here, too, so start brainstorming. Who gets to play those ever-important tigers?