Robert De Niro developing Bernie Madoff film for HBO

Jury president Robert De Niro (L) talks with jury member Uma Thurman (R) during the opening ceremony of the 64th Cannes Film Festival in Cannes May 11, 2011.[Photo/Agencies]

LOS ANGELES - Robert De Niro may be stepping into the stinky shoes worn by Bernie Madoff.

U.S. cable network HBO has picked up the rights to "The Wizard of Lies: Bernie Madoff and the Death of Trust" — Diane Henrique's non-fiction book which hit shelves last month — about the financial wunderkind who bilked millions from unsuspecting investors.

De Niro and his Tribeca Productions partner Jane Rosenthal will produce what is expected to be a starring vehicle for De Niro.

HBO has been in a ripped-from-the-headlines mood of late. Its movie on the 2008 financial crisis, "Too Big To Fail," airs this month, and it is shooting "Game Change," a film about the 2008 presidential election (starring Julianne Moore as Sarah Palin), from the team behind its Emmy-winning "Recount."