Spider-Man star Andrew Garfield is set to play Sir Richard Branson in a new series telling the story of the billionaire businessman and his airline company. David Leitch is set to direct the new six-part series, titled Hot Air, which is based on the book Dirty Tricks by investigative journalist Martyn Gregory, the PA news agency says.
The book explores the rise of Sir Richard’s airline company, Virgin Airways, from its launch in 1984 with one leased aeroplane. It also explores how by 1990 it started to threaten British Airways’ monopoly, promoting them to launch a “dirty tricks” campaign where staffers would impersonate Virgin employees to try and gain information to persuade passengers to switch to them instead.
The actor, 38, who is best known for his portrayal of Spider-Man, was recently nominated for his first Emmy Award for the crime drama Under The Banner Of Heaven. This year, Garfield was nominated for an Academy Award for his performance in Tick, Tick…Boom!
He was also recognised for the same role by winning best actor in a musical/comedy film at the Golden Globes. The film, which is Hamilton creator Lin-Manuel Miranda’s directorial debut, tells the story of Jonathan Larson’s attempt to enter the industry by writing a new musical.
Garfield also recently reprised his role as Spider-Man in 2021’s The Spider-Man: No Way Home, which saw the three actors who have played Peter Parker throughout the years – Garfield, Tobey Maguire and Tom Holland – unite for the first time ever.
