Jake Gyllenhaal and Benedict Cumberbatch in Talks for The Current War

Cumberbitches and Gyllenhaalics, rejoice. Your main boos are in discussions to star in The Current War, a film about the electricity battle between Thomas Edison and George Westinghouse. The two actors will portray the genius rivals, with Jake Gyllenhaal as Westinghouse and Benedict Cumberbatch as Edison.

Via THR:

Current War takes place in the late 1880s and revolves around power titans Edison and Westinghouse’s battle over the supply of electricity. Edison championed direct current (DC) for electric-power distribution over alternating current (AC), which was backed by several European companies and Westinghouse Electric.

The “War of Currents” was downright dirty. Edison tried proving Westinghouse’s system of electricity distribution to be more dangerous than his, even staging events where dogs were executed using Westinghouse’s alternating current. 🙁

Gyllenhaal is currently working on Tom Ford’s Nocturnal Animals while Cumberbatch will soon start filming Doctor Strange. Alfonso Gomez-Rejon (Me and Earl and the Dying Girl) is in talks to direct.