Virginia Madsen has stepped into the Amelia Earhart biopic Amelia for Avalon Pictures and Fox Searchlight. Hilary Swank and Richard Gere have already been cast in the Mira Nair project.

According to Variety, the film chronicles the rocky relationship between the famed aviator (Swank) and publisher-promoter George Putnam (Gere), whom Earhart eventually married. Madsen will play Dorothy Binney, Putnam's first wife.

Production starts later this month in Canada and South Africa.

Amelia was released October 23rd, 2009 and stars Hilary Swank, Richard Gere, Ewan McGregor, Christopher Eccleston, Joe Anderson, Cherry Jones, Mia Wasikowska, Aaron Abrams. The film is directed by Mira Nair.