Clint Eastwood is tackling another true story for his next movie. Warner Bros. Studios just acquired the rights for him to direct "The Ballad of Richard Jewell."

The Oscar-winning director was in talks to take on the project several years ago when it was set up at Fox. Now it's back in his ballpark at Warner Bros., where he's made the majority of his films.

Richard Jewell was a security guard who was first celebrated by the media as a hero for finding a bomb at the 1996 Olympic Summer Games in Atlanta -- before being vilified as the suspect who had actually planted the bomb. He was later cleared of the charges and sued several media outlets for libel.

That's the same true story that inspired the upcoming second season of TV series "Manhunt," which will air on Spectrum.

Jonah Hill and Leonardo Dicaprio had originally been attached to star in the film, but have since moved on to other projects. They will both stay on as producers.

Billy Ray ("Overlord") is writing the script, which will be based on a Marie Brenner article in Vanity Fair.

[Via Variety]