Jennifer Lawrence's Ex Nicholas Hoult Cast as J.D. Salinger in Biopic Movie 'Rebel in the Rye'

The life and memory of best-selling author J.D. Salinger will be embodied by Nicholas Hoult on screen in Danny Strong's drama Rebel in the Rye. Strong previously worked with Hoult's on-again, off-again girlfriend Jennifer Lawrence on the recent Hunger Games movies. This is sure to spark more dating rumors, but let's just focus on the Catcher in the Rye author's biopic. 

Rebel in the Rye will be introduced "to foreign buyers at the upcoming Toronto Film Festival, while CAA is representing the North American rights," Variety says. It will be under the Black Label Media banner.

The Hollywood Reporter says, "Strong wrote the screenplay, an adaptation of Kenneth Slawenski biography, J.D. Salinger: A Life, and he will also direct the film." Deadline says that Strong is best known for writing the screenplays to Mockingjay Part 1 and Part 2 and for co-creating Fox's Empire with Lee Daniels as well as winning an Emmy for the HBO film Game Change.

As for the story penned by Slawenski and adapted to the screen by Strong, Salinger ended up having a nervous breakdown after having a "rebellious youth and seeing the horrors of World War II where he ended up on Utah Beach and was part of the notorious Battle of the Bulge," Deadline says. Apparently, Salinger was expected and known for his brutal hand-to-hand combat and then later suffered from PTSD. He was indeed hospitalized for this massive breakdown. His life took a turn for the worse after coming home and marrying a woman who allegedly had a Nazi Party past. Not long after their nuptials, the couple ended up calling it quits.

Hoult will be Salinger's face on screen and will hopefully bring the drama and heartbreak to the forefront in Rebel in the Rye.

The Hollywood Reporter says, "Hoult was most recently seen in Mad Max: Fury Road and Dark Places, both with Charlize Theron. He'll be seen in sci-fi drama Equals opposite Kristen Stewart, which will screen in Toronto. His other upcoming projects include X-Men: Apocalypse."

Rebel in the Rye will be amongst a myriad of films on the horizon for Hoult.