The Brokeback Mountain star has expressed an interest in tackling the story of Jeff Bauman, who lost both his legs in the atrocity, when two explosions went off near the finish line at the famous race in April, 2013.

Three people were killed and more than 260 were injured in the attack.

Gyllenhaal has met with executives at Lionsgate, the studio behind the picture, and has emerged as the frontrunner to star as Bauman, who had been cheering on his girlfriend in the race, according to Variety.com.

Pineapple Express filmmaker David Gordon Green has been tapped to direct Stronger, based on the book by Bauman and Bret Witter, which details the aftermath of the tragedy.

Strong is not the only movie in development about the Boston bombings - Fox executives are working on Boston Strong, while Mark Wahlberg is attached to Patriot's Day at CBS Films.