Nicolas Cage and Johnny Depp Star in John McAfee Biopic 'King of the Jungle,' Filming Puerto Rico in Late 2026

One of the most anticipated and unconventional biopics in development is moving closer to cameras. King of the Jungle, the feature film dramatizing the stranger-than-fiction life of antivirus software mogul and international fugitive John McAfee, has locked a December 8, 2026 production start and is actively in casting and pre-production. With Nicolas Cage attached to play McAfee and Johnny Depp in the mix as well, this is shaping up to be one of the more high-wattage, high-chaos productions of next year, and working professionals would do well to put it on their radar now.

The film is being directed by Glenn Ficarra and John Requa, the duo best known for writing Bad Santa and directing Crazy, Stupid, Love and the Showtime series Shameless. Their filmography runs a distinctive line between dark comedy and genuine emotional depth, and their comfort with morally complicated protagonists makes them a natural fit for the McAfee story. The script comes from Scott Alexander and Larry Karaszewski, one of the most celebrated writing teams in the biopic genre. Alexander and Karaszewski wrote Ed Wood, The People vs. Larry Flynt, Man on the Moon and Big Eyes, so their fingerprints on a project about an eccentric, boundary-dissolving tech billionaire with a god complex is not just appropriate, it feels almost inevitable. Josh Davis, whose long-form journalism on McAfee is credited as source material, also carries a writer credit. The logline frames the story through a journalist following McAfee into the Belizean jungle, where he finds a man operating like a real-life Colonel Kurtz presiding over what the production describes as a kingdom of beautiful chaos. The tone signals something in the vein of Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas or The Disaster Artist: vivid, dangerous, darkly funny, and deeply strange.

Casting is an event in itself here. Nicolas Cage as John McAfee is a piece of casting that practically explains itself given both men's reputations for living loudly and without apology. Cage has had a remarkable career resurgence in recent years, with critically acclaimed performances in Pig and The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent, the latter of which saw him playing a fictionalized version of himself with surprising self-awareness and wit. Johnny Depp's involvement adds another layer of intrigue. Depp has been largely absent from major studio productions in recent years following his highly publicized legal battles, and his casting here will draw significant industry and media attention. Casting is being handled by Marisol Roncali, CSA and Chelsea Ellis Bloch, CSA, with Marissa Blair serving as Associate Casting Director and Maggie Kissinger as Casting Assistant. Agents representing talent for supporting and day player roles should be watching this team closely as the cast fills out over the coming months.

The production is a product of Endurance Media, a company with a track record of ambitious, talent-driven projects. The producer lineup is exceptionally broad and includes Marc Butan, Todd Williams, Joshua Davis (also a writer), Charlie Gogolak, Jeremy Steckler, Joshuah Bearman, Arthur Spector, Danny Cohen, Len Blavatnik, Scott Budnick and Ameet Shukla. Scott Budnick is well known in the industry as the producer behind the Hangover franchise and a founder of the nonprofit Anti-Recidivism Coalition, and his involvement typically signals a production with real financial infrastructure behind it. Joshuah Bearman is a journalist and co-founder of Epic Magazine, whose work was previously adapted into the Oscar-winning Argo. His presence here alongside Josh Davis reinforces the journalistic authenticity the production is building around the McAfee story.

Here is where the location picture requires some attention from crew. The production description specifies that filming begins December 8, 2026 in Puerto Rico, which makes immediate logistical sense given that a significant portion of the McAfee story takes place in Belize and the broader Caribbean region. Puerto Rico offers tropical jungle environments that can convincingly double for Central America, and the island has been building its production infrastructure steadily in recent years, with an aggressive tax incentive program administered through the Puerto Rico Film Commission offering up to 40 percent transferable tax credits on qualified local expenditures. That incentive has attracted productions including Benicio del Toro's projects and various streaming features seeking a Caribbean backdrop without the logistical complications of filming in countries with less-developed crew infrastructure. However, the production data also lists Atlanta, Georgia and Hawaii as filming locations, which suggests a multi-location shoot of real scale. Atlanta has one of the deepest and most experienced union crew bases in the country outside of Los Angeles and New York, with major stage facilities including Trilith Studios and several purpose-built backlots. Hawaii brings its own logistical complexity but obvious visual assets. The 1st AD is listed as Stephen Hagen, whose attachment at this stage suggests the production is well past early development and actively building its shooting plan.

A project of this scope, covering multiple international locations with two major stars and a large producer group, is almost certainly a union production operating at a healthy mid-to-upper-tier feature budget. The genre requires a strong art department to convincingly recreate late 2000s Belize, John McAfee's notorious compound, and what by all accounts was an extraordinarily peculiar physical world. Expect significant costume and makeup demands given the period elements and the sheer visual iconography of McAfee himself. The multi-location nature of the shoot will keep a locations department very busy, and a production spanning Puerto Rico, Georgia and potentially Hawaii will require experienced production coordinators and travel logistics personnel who can manage the complexity of moving a large unit across jurisdictions. With a December 2026 start, department heads in art, camera, locations, costume, and production are likely being approached for availability conversations in the months ahead.

For crew actively tracking this one, now is exactly the right time to get on the radar before the department head slots fill. Full production details including office contacts, crew list updates, and scheduling information are available through the King of the Jungle listing at ProductionList.com. With principal photography roughly a year out and a production of this profile, the staffing pipeline will move faster than the calendar suggests. Check the listing, bookmark it, and reach out to your contacts in pre-production. This is the kind of project that tends to hire its key crew quietly and early.

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