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Ben Foster as Lance Armstrong In Biopic: See The First Photo!

Ben Foster as Lance Armstrong
Ben Foster will star as Lance Armstrong in Stephen Frears' upcoming biopic.

Lance Armstrong — his movie alter ego, that is — is wheeling his way on to the big screen. The first photo from Stephen Frears' upcoming biopic of the embattled cyclist has dropped. 

Actor Ben Foster — bald and clad in Armstrong's iconic yellow jersey, with his face conveying a sense of utter determination — zips past fans as he's mid-race at the Tour de France. Frears' untitled film, scripted by Trainspotting writer John Hodge, is based on Irish sports journalist David Walsh's book Seven Deadly Sins: My Pursuit of Lance Armstrong.

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The StudioCanal-backed biopic will chronicle Armstrong's battle against testicular cancer in the '90s to his meteoric rise after seven Tour de France victories– and the massive doping scandal that ultimately led to his demise. Following an in-depth investigation helmed by the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency and led in part by Walsh, Armstrong was stripped of his Tour de France titles in 2012. He admitted to his transgressions in a high-profile sit-down interview with Oprah Winfrey in Jan. 2013, expressing remorse to his supporters: "They got lied to," he said. 

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Chris O'Dowd of Bridesmaids and HBO's Girls will portray Walsh, Jesse Plemons of Breaking Bad steps in as another cyclist, while Guillaume Canet, a French actor and beau to Marion Cotillard, will play Armstrong's rival. The lead, Foster, who's currently dating Robin Wright, has starred in films like The Messenger, X-Men: The Last Stand, and held a memorable role in Six Feet Under.

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This film isn't the only Lance Armstrong movie currently in the works. Bradley Cooper will start in the Jay Roach-directed flick titled, Red Blooded American. J.J. Abrams is also developing a film about the fallen cyclist.

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