LA GRANDE — The compelling and tragic story of Jadin Bell and his father, Joe Bell, will soon hit the silver screen.

“Joe Bell” is set to open in theaters July 23. The announcement has been made on the Twitter site of Mark Wahlberg, who plays Joe Bell in the film.

“This family and their story touched my heart in a big way,” the social media post said.

The story of Joe and Jadin Bell made national headlines in 2013 after Jadin, a 15-year-old sophomore at La Grande High School, took his own life after being bullied because he was gay.

Joe Bell later started on a national walk in memory of his son to draw attention to bullying. He was killed on Oct. 9, 2013, while walking along a road when he was hit by a truck in Colorado.

The movie was originally scheduled to be released in theaters in February, but the release was delayed because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Patty Johnson, manager of La Grande’s Granada Theatre, said she is attempting to get the movie booked for showings at the theater. Johnson said she first needs to receive authorization from its distributor. She said distributors have requirements for elements like screen size and audience capacity that must be met before their films can be shown in a theater. Johnson said she does not anticipate problems in receiving authorization.

The film is being released by Solstice Studios and was directed by Reinaldo Marcus Green, and its screenplay was written by Diana Ossana and Larry McMurtry. Ossana and McMurtry also wrote the screenplay for the 2005 landmark film “Brokeback Mountain.” The stars of “Joe Bell,” in addition to Wahlberg, include Connie Britton and Morgan Lily. The movie was filmed at sites around Utah, including Salt Lake City and Summit County.

Although the film was not shot in Union County, Wahlberg did visit La Grande in late January 2019 to do research for his part in the movie.

A portion of the movie focuses on Joe Bell’s walk, when he gave a number of talks in churches, schools and other places on behalf of his foundation. He talked of the evils of bullying and what can be done to prevent it.

Jadin Bell’s family members and friends said bullying drove him to suicide, and they later launched an anti-bullying campaign called Faces for Change.

Joe Bell premiered at the 2020 Toronto International Film Festival. It was once titled Good Joe Bell, according to the website www.slashfilm.com.