Dock Ellis Biopic 'Dock' Lands Grammy-Winning Director Jack Begert
A film about one of baseball's most unforgettable characters has found its director. The Dock Ellis biopic Dock has set Jack Begert to direct from his own script, Deadline reported exclusively on 3 September 2026.
Begert arrives with an unusual résumé. He won a Grammy for Best Music Video for Kendrick Lamar's "Not Like Us," came up directing clips for Vince Staples and Dominic Fike, and then pivoted to features. His debut, the dark comedy Little Death — produced by Darren Aronofsky — won the NEXT Innovator Award at its 2024 Sundance premiere. Deadline
The film will chronicle Ellis' unconventional career, his outspoken advocacy for Black players in Major League Baseball, and the no-hitter he pitched on 12 June 1970 while under the influence of LSD. Ellis, then a Pittsburgh Pirate, threw a 2-0 victory against the San Diego Padres, walking eight batters across nine innings. It was the fourth no-hitter in Pirates franchise history. Deadline; Pirates
Ellis played MLB from 1968 to 1979, suiting up for the Pirates, New York Yankees, Oakland Athletics, Texas Rangers and New York Mets. He was known for his flamboyant personality and his willingness to speak bluntly on race in the sport. After retiring, he spoke openly about his struggles with substance abuse and worked as a drug counsellor before his death in 2008. Deadline
Oscar-nominated producer David Permut, whose credits include Hacksaw Ridge, has been developing the project for at least a decade. He is producing under his Permut Presentations banner alongside Joel Reilly and Patrick Peterson of Undisputed Pictures. Alex Astrachan at Permut Presentations will co-produce with Joey Poach, whose spec script — an original screenplay shopped to studios before any attachment — forms the basis of the project. Dreamscape Entertainment's Ice Cube and Jeff Kwatinetz are executive producing, with Jasper Graham as consulting producer. Deadline
O'Shea Jackson Jr. was formerly attached to star but has exited the project. New casting talks are now underway. Deadline
Permut's recent track record gives the project commercial ballast. He teamed with director Olivia Wilde on The Invite, an English-language remake of Cesc Gay's Spanish film The People Upstairs starring Wilde opposite Seth Rogen, Penélope Cruz and Edward Norton. The film landed at A24 in a bidding war after premiering to critical acclaim at Sundance and grossed over $51 million worldwide. Next up for Permut is Being Heumann, an Apple disability rights drama from CODA Oscar winner Sian Heder, set to open the Toronto International Film Festival on 10 September. Deadline
Begert is represented by UTA and Zachary Stein at Granderson Des Rochers. Permut is represented by John Tishbi at Pearlman & Tishbi, LLC. No production start date or distributor has been announced. Deadline
