Tom McCarthy Pens "Million Dollar Arm"

Back in 2000, while still toiling around public school somewhere, I had my first interaction with filmmaker and actor Tom McCarthy.

He had a small role in "Meet the Parents" as the soon-to-be son in-law of Robert De Niro and for some reason I can't quite understand till this day, I thought he was the funniest thing in it. Maybe it was something about the timing in a couple of his lines, but either way, the point is that afterwards I looked up his name in the credits, and from then on I was a McCarthy fan.

I soon learned that on top of acting, McCarthy was quite a writer and director as well, with his 2003 film "The Station Agent" and then later on in 2007 with "The Visitor." He also lent his talents to the development of the screenplay for "Up," so clearly the man has talent.

His upcoming film, "Win Win," is getting good early buzz, so it's great to hear that McCarthy has just picked up another writing gig. According to The Hollywood Reporter, McCarthy is set to pen "Million Dollar Arm" for Walt Disney Pictures.

The story is based on the inspirational tale of how sports agent J.B. Bernstein discovered professional baseball pitchers Rinku Singh and Dinesh Patel from over 40,000 contestants through an Indian reality show. Patel and Singh became the first athletes from India to sign professional baseball contracts when joining the Pittsburgh Pirates.

McCarthy’s is set to pen the project next, but as of yet there's no word on a director or whether he would be up for the job himself.

Whether McCarthy writes or directs the film, it sounds as if it should be an inspiring one, much like Disney's other sports films, such as "Secretariat." The story behind the two players is truly fascinating, even for people who aren't baseball fans.

While I think this type of story would be a great project for McCarthy to direct, just the fact that he is contributing the screenplay is a huge step in the right direction.

Movie News: Its "Win Win" For Tom McCarthy

Tom McCarthy ("The Visitor," "The Station Agent") is set to direct "Win Win" for Fox Searchlight Pictures.

According to Vulture: “McCarthy's new film is a drama about a suburban New Jersey family and the teen runaway who changes their lives and turns around the sagging fortunes of a high school wrestling team. Paul Giamatti (“Sideways”) and Amy Ryan (“The Wire”) are set to star.

For those who don’t quite know him, the versatile McCarthy is that rare working actor, director and screenwriter who seemingly does everything well: He was nominated for the Best Original Screenplay Oscar for his work on Pixar's “Up,” which also was nominated for Best Animated Feature and Best Picture. It won Best Animated Feature.

McCarthy also directed the independent films “The Station Agent” and “The Visitor,” the latter of which got Richard Jenkins a Best Actor Oscar nomination last year. McCarthy also starred in the final season of HBO's “The Wire,” playing an overambitious Sun reporter who wins the Pulitzer by fabricating quotes and even entire subjects for his stories.

McCarthy has shown over the years how versatile he can be as an actor, and he has also proved himself as a worthy director. Jenkins was always a great character actor, but never did he receive more praise than when he teamed with McCarthy for “The Visitor.”

I am also a big fan of Amy Ryan, who has done well for herself on television (“The Office,” “The Wire”) and the movies (“Gone Baby Gone”), garnering an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress in 2007.

Production will begin later this year.