For his next project, “Crazy Rich Asians” director Jon M. Chu plans to chronicle the incredible life story of Arnel Pineda,the Filipino singer that Journey co-founder Neal Schon discovered on YouTube, performing scorching covers of the 1980s arena band’s hits.
Recruited as the San Francisco group’s lead singer in 2007, as the second replacement for vocalist Steve Perry, Pineda is credited with carrying Journey through its commercial and cultural resurgence over the past decade.
The band was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame last year and recently wrapped up a stadium tour with co-headliners Def Leppard, after “Don’t Stop Believin’” became the unofficial anthem for the San Francisco Giants’ run of World Series victories.
“This story in particular has been on my mind since I first read about it years ago,” Chu said in a statement to the movie industry site Deadline. “A true fairy tale and triumph of the human spirit. An unlikely hero, an undeniable talent, the power of music and a worldwide stage (literally) has all the ingredients I love about movies.”
The director said the movie, which will be shot for Warner Bros., is based on the 2012 documentary “Don’t Stop Believin’: Everyman’s Journey,” which shows fans Pineda’s rise from a life of poverty in Manila to globe-trotting superstar. The studio is negotiating to license the original Journey music.
With the box office successes of the Freddie Mercury and Queen biopic “Bohemian Rhapsody” and Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper’s “A Star Is Born,” the timing couldn’t be better.
Chu added, “I have been a fan of Journey’s music since I can remember. I am excited to be bringing the audience along on this incredible story with my partners at Warner Bros., who have been a leading champion of diverse voices in front and behind the camera.”
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