A first glimpse of the upcoming two-part biopic on Shane Warne has been snapped as filming for the tribute kicked off in Melbourne. Warnie is due to land on our screens in the new year and pap shots have spotted its lead role sporting a bleached blonde lid, just like the late cricketer’s iconic look.
Photos published by The Daily Mail revealed Alex Williams (Underground: The Julian Assange Story, Home and Away) in full Warnie kit, wearing a white button-up shirt, long denim shorts (hello jorts), brown sandals and the legend’s signature gold earring.
He was walking alongside Marny Kennedy (Janet King, Home and Away) who was styled in cropped cargo pants and a prosthetic baby bump, assumedly portraying Warne’s ex-wife Simone Callahan while pregnant with one of their three children.
The Herald Sun previously reported Warne’s eldest daughter Brooke slammed the telemovie as “beyond disrespectful” in July which sent Nine Network’s team into crisis talks with the spin king’s long-term manager James Erskine about the future of the project.
“Do any of you have any respect for Dad? Or his family?” she wrote on her Instagram Story.
“Who did so much for Channel 9 and now you want to dramatise his life and our family’s life six months after he passed away? You are beyond disrespectful.”
Erskine — who also had reservations about Warnie going ahead so soon after the sporting legend’s death in March — reportedly met with Channel 9’s TV director Michael Healy and head of drama Andy Ryan to discuss the two-part special’s intent.
“They both guaranteed me that this was going to be a celebration of Shane Warne,” Erskine told the Herald Sun.
“Now we know Shane was a colourful character, you can’t get away from that. You can’t sanitise it and suddenly say he is a clergyman.
“But they have assured me it will be done appropriately. At the end of the day if they do a hatchet job, then the whole world will be watching.”
Brooke reinforced her feelings towards Warnie in early October when she told the Herald Sun she’s struggled with her mental health in the months since her father’s death.
“With the extra media scrutiny created by dad’s passing I need to stay mindful to deal with the attention,” she said.
“Especially with the negative aspect, such as the total disrespect shown by Channel 9 in creating a biopic about dad so soon after he passed.”
The Shane Warne biopic Warnie is slated to premiere on Channel 9 in 2023.
