Casey Affleck to Write, Direct Josh Hamilton Biopic

Casey Affleck’s directorial career took a hit with the 2010 documentary “I’m Still Here.”

The film, an elaborate pop culture stunt featuring Joaquin Phoenix’s faux attempt at a rap career, failed to catch fire with both critics and audiences alike.

Not the best way to start a directorial career, to say the least. Brother Ben Affleck did it the right way, showing promise and poise with the 2007 mystery “Gone Baby Gone.”

Casey Affleck is stepping up the plate once more, courtesy of baseball’s most inscrutable talent.

The actor/director will write and direct a biopic of free agent slugger Josh Hamilton, who played last season for the Texas Rangers. Hamilton isn’t just another home run hitter. His power is the stuff scouts salivate over, but his battles with addiction have robbed him of both at bats and prestige.

Thunder Road Pictures’ Kent Kubena will executive produce with Hamilton and his wife, Katie, co-producing along with business manager Steve Reed, an arrangement that was reported in June. Back then, the Hamiltons said through a statement that they would be “an integral part of the film’s creative direction and accuracy as the project develops….”

Hamilton was the first overall selection in the 1999 draft by the Tampa Bay Rays, but his career was slowed by drug and alcohol addiction. He arrived in the majors in 2007 and wowed fans with his performance at the 2008 Home Run Derby at Yankee Stadium.