Saturday Night Live alum Pete Davidson is set to lead an upcoming crime thriller movie, titled Tommy Karate, based on real-life mobster and serial killer Tommy Pitera. Davidson has been developing the project for over three years.

According to Deadline, Davidson will be joined by Camila Mendes (Masters of the Universe), Paul Walter Hauser (Black Bird), and Simon Rex (Red Rocket), with Hauser playing notorious DEA agent Jim Hunt. Production is scheduled to begin this June.

What do we know about Tommy Karate?

Tommy Karate will be directed by Justin Chon (Pachinco), who co-wrote the screenplay with Davidson and Joseph Gay. It will be based on Philip Carlo’s non-fiction true crime book The Butcher: Anatomy Of A Mafia Psychopath. The film is produced by Davidson, Lucan Toh, Ford Corbett, and Nathan Klingher. Executive producers are Mark Fasano, Joshua Harris, Michael Rothstein, Samuel Hall, Warren Goz, Laura Garofalo, Jarod Einsohn, and David Osokow. It hails from North.Five.Six, Two & Two Pictures and Gramercy Park Media.

“Tommy Karate is the greatest mob story never told. I’ve been working on this for over three years, and I’m beyond thrilled that it’s finally in motion,” Davidson said in a statement. “Playing a role like this is a dream job. We have a great team behind this one, and I can’t wait for people to see what we’ve come up with.”

Chon added, “Together with Pete and the team, we’re reimagining the gangster genre through a contemporary lens—driven by character, fresh visuals, and real consequence. This isn’t nostalgia. It’s a reinvention.”

The movie will chronicle the pursuit and capture of Tommy Pitera, who was described as one of America’s most ruthless mobsters and serial killers. Due to his martial arts skills, he was given the nicknames of Tommy Karate and The Karate Guy. In 1992, he was sentenced to life imprisonment after being arrested for murder and operating a big drug operation. He is currently serving his sentence at the United States Penitentiary, Big Sandy.

(Source: Deadline)