Don Cheadle Tackling Story of Wall Street's First Black Millionaire (Exclusive)

Cheadle is reteaming with his 'Miles Ahead' scribe Steven Baigelman as he plans to star in and produce the adaptation of Shane White's biography 'Prince of Darkness.'

Don Cheadle has acquired the film and TV rights to Prince of Darkness by Shane White, with plans to adapt the 2015 book as a starring vehicle.

Steven Baigelman, who worked with Cheadle on the Miles Davis biopic Miles Ahead, is reteaming with the actor and will pen the script for the drama. Cheadle will produce and star.

Prince of Darkness: The Untold Story of Jeremiah G. Hamilton, Wall Street’s First Black Millionaire sheds light on the obscure story of Hamilton, who was mentioned in an obituary for Cornelius Vanderbilt as the tycoon’s true rival. White’s book details the rise of Hamilton as he is chased out of Haiti and becomes a broker and land agent in 19th century New York, his success prickling both white and black society. He broke many taboos of the times, including marrying a white woman and owning stock in rail companies on whose trains he wasn’t legally allowed to ride. When Hamilton died, obits at the time called him the richest black man in America.

The book has been awarded the Society of Historians of the Early American Republic’s best book prize and the 2016 New York City Book Award.

Cheadle may be best known for playing hero James Rhodes, aka War Machine, in the Marvel Iron Man and Captain America movies. He also is the Golden Globe-winning star of House of Lies, which ran five seasons on Showtime.

Both Cheadle and Baigelman are repped by UTA. White is repped by UTA and the Strothman Agency.