Just imagine what the silk robe budget is going to be! After a solid decade of rumors that he would one day reign as a tragic British king, Al Pacino will finally be portraying the titular lead in a film adaptation of William Shakespeare’s King Lear. This comes via confirmation by The Guardian, which reports the film will be directed by Michael Radford and produced by Barry Navidi, who previously adapted Shakespeare for Pacino with 2004’s The Merchant of Venice. “Lear is the one that everyone aims for. Al has been toying with the idea for a long time,†Navidi explained, noting the film will begin shooting next fall. “We all have the energy to do it now. We’re creating, hopefully, an epic. Michael and Al are going to stick to the original poetry. But a lot is to do with the delivery and the visuals. How Michael combines it and makes it more accessible, it becomes naturalistic rather than forced.†Onward to the SparkNotes page…