Richard Linklater to write and direct biopic on comedian Bill Hicks

Director Richard Linklater has set up the biopic of comedian Bill Hicks as his next project.

The 58-year-old filmmaker, best known for critically acclaimed films such as "Before" trilogy, "Dazed and Confused" and "Boyhood", will write and direct the new feature for Focus Features, reported Indiewire.

Hicks was raised as a Southern Baptist and began performing comedy in the late 1970s in Texas. He toured extensively during the 1980s, achieving widespread success for his act, which used dark comedy to tackle social issues of the day.

The comedian died from pancreatic cancer in 1994 at the age of 32.

Linklater is an avowed fan of Hicks, and shares a similar Southern Baptist upbringing. He has regretted in the past that he never got the chance to work with the comedian who was a fan of the director's coming-of-age movie "Dazed and Confused".

The filmmaker is currently working on "Where'd You Go, Bernadette", which features an ensemble cast of Cate Blanchett, Kristen Wiig, Judy Greer, Billy Crudup and Laurence Fishburne.