It’s a great day for YA movie fans (and a terrible day for anyone looking forward to a Gambit movie) as The Hollywood Reporter revealed that filmmaker Doug Liman (Edge of Tomorrow, The Bourne Identity, Mr. & Mrs. Smith) has signed on to helm Lionsgate/Summit‘s post-apocalyptic YA thriller Chaos Walking.
Robert Zemeckis was originally attached to the project way back in late 2013, adapting author Patrick Ness’ bestselling young adult book series’ first entry, “The Knife of Never Letting Go.”
As was true three years ago, Charlie Kaufman (Adaptation, Synecdoche, New York) will provide the adapted screenplay for the 2008 tome, officially described as follows: Todd Hewitt is the last boy in Prentisstown. But Prentisstown isn’t like other towns. Everyone can hear everyone else’s thoughts in a constant, overwhelming, never-ending Noise. There is no privacy. There are no secrets. Or are there? Just one month away from the birthday that will make him a man, Todd unexpectedly stumbles upon a spot of complete silence. Which is impossible. Prentisstown has been lying to him. And now he’s going to have to run…
Doug Davison (who worked with Liman on next year’s Tom Cruise starrer Mena) and Alli Shearmur (Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, Cinderella) are producing Chaos Walking and the hope is to eventually develop the other two books (“The Ask and the Answer” and ”Monsters of Men”) as well. Zemeckis and his ImageMovers’ partner Jack Rapke remain onboard as producers, with production expected to go forward in early 2017 after Liman completes work on the Amazon production The Wall starring Aaron Taylor-Johnson.
