Apr 13, 2016; Los Angeles, CA, USA: Los Angeles Lakers forward Kobe Bryant (24) waves to the crowd as he heads to the bench before the end of the Lakers win over the Utah Jazz at Staples Center. Bryant scored 60 points in the final game of his career. Mandatory Credit: Robert Hanashiro-Imagn Images Robert Hanashiro-Imagn Images

Tom Brady, Warner Bros Making Kobe Bryant Biopic

Originally posted on Los Angeles Lakers on SI
By Alex Kirschenbaum | Last updated Aug 23, 2025 1:00 PM ET

Hall of Fame former Los Angeles Lakers shooting guard Kobe Bryant would have been 47 today.

Instead, along with daughter Gianna and seven other souls, he passed away in a tragic January 2020 helicopter accident in the Pacific Palisades, on a foggy Los Angeles morning. But his basketball legacy will last forever.

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Now, the 6-foot-6 shooting guard out of Lower Merion High School in Phila delphia is getting the prestige cinematic biography treatment.

Per Jeff Sneider of The InSneider , Hall of Fame former New England Patriots/Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady's production company Religion of Sports and the producers of the Oscar-winning Richard Williams biopic "King Richard" are co-producing a new Kobe Bryant biopic for Warner Brothers.

EXCLUSIVE: There's a Kobe Bryant movie in the works at Warner Bros. from the producers of KING RICHARD and @TomBrady's production company Religion of Sports.https://t.co/oHwhMPcV5M
— Jeff Sneider (@TheInSneider) August 22, 2025

Per Sneider, the current script is called "With the 8th Pick," a nod to the fact that the New Jersey Nets had been eyeing Bryant with the No. 8 pick in the loaded 1996 NBA Draft. When Bryant and his handlers dissuaded New Jersey, insisting he wouldn't play for the Nets, the Nets pivoted by selecting Kerry Kittles. He fell to the Charlotte Hornets with the No. 13 pick, who flipped him to the Los Angeles Lakers in exchange for Vlade Divac.

The Best Player in One of the NBA's Best Drafts Ever

Bryant was the best player selected in 1996, a loaded list that also included Bryant's eventual fellow Hall of Famers Allen Iverson (the No. 1 pick), Ray Allen (No. 5), Steve Nash (No. 15), and Ben Wallace (who went undrafted out of Virginia Union University). Bryant, Iverson and Nash all went on to win MVP awards.

All-NBA standouts Stephon Marbury (No. 4), Peja Stojakovic (No. 14), and Jermaine O'Neal (No. 17) and All-Stars Shareef Abdur-Rahim (No. 3), Antoine Walker (No. 6), and Zydrunas Iglauskas (No. 20) were all also selected.

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Between 2000 and 2010, Bryant would go on to lead the Lakers to seven NBA Finals appearances, including five championships. He got there with some jumbo-sized help, playing alongside Hall of Fame big men Shaquille O'Neal from 1996-2004 and Pau Gasol from 2008-14.

An 18-time All-Star, 15-time All-NBA honoree, and 12-time All-Defensive Teamer, the swingman averaged 25.0 points on .447/.329/.837 shooting splits, 5.2 rebounds, and 4.7 assists across 1,346 regular season contests. An elite mid-range shooter and scorer around the rack, Bryant led the league in scoring twice.