Olympic gymnast
Kerri Strug became an American hero overnight thanks to her gold medal-winning final vault at the 1996 summer Olympic games. The story took the nation by storm, and now it will be told on the big screen in
Perfect, a new film that will be directed by
Olivia Wilde (
Booksmart). After an extensive search for a young star to take the lead role, the filmmaker has chosen
Jojo Rabbit star
Thomasin McKenzie to vault into the “intimate and unflinching portrait of grit and determination.”
If you’re not familiar with Kerri Strug’s story, here’s a great profile of her famous moment from the Olympics:
Thomasin McKenzie (
Leave No Trace) is set to star in Olivia Wilde’s upcoming biopic on Olympic gold medalist Kerri Strug in
Perfect. According to Deadline, Wilde will direct from a script by Ronnie Sandahl for Searchlight.
Described as “an intimate and unflinching portrait of grit and determination,
Perfect charts the story behind Kerri Strug’s historic Olympic vault to secure America’s first ever gymnastics team gold.”
Strug was a member of the 1996 United States Olympic gymnastics team that was later dubbed ‘The Magnificent Seven’. She is known for vaulting during the competition and injured her ankle on her first landing, but despite the injury she still did her second vault. Despite having and landing on her broken ankle, Strug still won herself and the team a gold medal for her second vault.
Thomasin McKenzie Recruited to Portray Kerri Strug in Olivia Wilde-Directed Biopic
Movie Perfect will chronicle the Olympic gymnast s heroic performance at the 1996 Olympics where she completed a final, gold medal-winning vault in the team competition on a badly injured ankle. May 4, 2021
Olivia Wilde s biopic about U.S. Olympic gymnast
Kerri Strug.
Perfect (2022) will chronicle the athlete s heroic performance at the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta, Georgia, where she won the nation s hearts by completing a final, gold medal-winning vault in the team competition on a badly injured ankle that later required treatment for ligament damage.
The film will serve as Wilde s next directorial project, and now rising New Zealand-born star McKenzie, who landed her breakout role in 2018 drama