Who'd play Enzo Ferrari best – Christian Bale or Robert De Niro?

Not one, but two Hollywood greats will soon portray Enzo Ferrari on screen. Robert De Niro and Christian Bale will both become ‘Il Commendatore’, in two unrelated movie productions...

The two Enzos

In April, Classic Driver reported that Robert De Niro will take on the lead role in a biopic about the life of Enzo Ferrari. The movie is to be based on Ferrari’s self-published autobiography ‘Ferrari 80’, and will document the career of the legendary company founder and racing manager, from the 1940s through to the 1980s. Rumour has it that director of ‘American Sniper’, Clint Eastwood, will be behind the camera. However, another major studio is also working on a movie drama about the notoriously moody Ferrari chief. This time, ‘Il Commendatore’ will apparently be played by former ‘Batman’ Christian Bale, with Michael Mann (of ‘Heat’ and ‘Miami Vice’ fame) given the directorial reins. However, the latter is not based on Ferrari’s entire career, instead focusing on the dramatic events of the year 1957, when the Scuderia chief had to cope with the deaths of drivers Alfonso de Portago and Edmund Nelson, along with nine spectators at the Mille Miglia, as described in the book ‘Enzo Ferrari: The Man, The Cars, The Races’ penned by the American writer Brock Yates.

This Hollywood showdown looks to have the makings of an epic duel – just how Old Man Ferrari would have wanted it.

Photos: Getty Images / Rex Features