Only days after the article about the McDonald’s Monopoly scam, titled “McScam: How an Ex-Cop Rigged McDonald’s Monopoly Game and Stole Millions,” was published, studios and A-list actors quickly began trying to snag it for cinematic adaptation.
Martin Scorsese was interested in making “McScam” and having frequent collaborator Leonardo DiCaprio play the lead, Will Ferrell and Mark Wahlberg separately pursed the project and Steven Spielberg’s production company, Amblin Entertainment, attempted to acquire the rights.
As Vulture detailed, Warner Bros tried to buy “McScam” to make a movie that would have starred Steve Carell and been directed by John Requa and Glenn Ficarra, who helmed Whiskey Foxtrot Tango together.
Other heavy hitters included Netflix bidding on behalf of Robert Downey Jr. and The Hangover’s Todd Phillips and Universal trying to snag it for a Kevin Hart-led flick, but it wasn’t just studios that came to the proverbial table.