Exclusive: After chronicling the BlackBerry’s rise and fall with Matt Johnson’s lauded IFC film of the same name, Jay Baruchel has come aboard to star in another true story, The Stunt Driver, a film chronicling the exploits of daredevil stuntman Ken Carter.

Reuniting Baruchel with Michael Dowse, the filmmaker behind his R-rated 2011 hockey comedy Goon, The Stunt Driver watches as “The Mad Canadian” Carter attempts to execute the boldest maneuver of his career during the 1970s, launching a rocket car off a 90-foot-high ramp across the St. Lawrence River. Covering a span of more than a mile, the stunt would have him jump from Canada into the United States. The film, which Dowse calls his “white whale project,” follows Carter’s quest to make his seemingly impossible dream a reality, chronicling his preparation for the jump and the absurd challenges he faces along the way.

Based on the...