"I loved the idea of an alcoholic, nihilistic, subversive superhero, fighting crime drunk," says Peter Berg about Hancock - a screenplay that's been kicking around Hollywood for a dozen years or so, and that had, at various points, Michael Mann and Tony Scott among the folks attached to direct.
But Berg, the actor (The Last Seduction, TV's Chicago Hope) turned director, landed the gig. He heard about the project, and about Will Smith's interest in the role, when Berg was midway through shooting The Kingdom, the Jamie Foxx/Jennifer Garner Middle East action pic.