Producers of the possible movie about Capt. Richard Phillips - the American freighter captain who surrendered himself to Somali pirates to protect his crew - would be wise to consider casting him in the starring role.
I'm glad they might make a movie about Phillips. A film centered on the skipper of U.S.-flagged Maersk Alabama and his rescue would resonate a lot with the public.
The story has everything that a great suspenseful movie needs: a hero, a volatile situation, nonstop tension and a violent climax in which the U.S.-of-A. wins.
The best choice the producers could make in a situation like this would be to seek out Phillips to be the film's star. This isn't such a radical idea. In 2004, an Argentinean movie called "Whisky Romeo Zulu" was released about a pilot who fought corruption in the civil aviation industry in 1999. The person who played the lead role was the actual whistle-blower himself. His performance - apart from being authentic - wasn't bad, showing that one doesn't need an acting background in movies; one only needs to know how to take direction.
Besides providing a layer of authenticity, casting Phillips as himself would also better ensure that his heroic story does not transform into a typical, loud and unrealistic popcorn flick. Phillips, more than anyone, would be best equipped to make sure that the sole purpose of this movie would not be to fatten up the producers' wallets.