“Wild” has been seemingly on the cusp of being made for quite some time. The true story of a woman undertaking a 1,100 mile journey after suffering a personal tragedy has gone on its own little journey to reach the big screen, but now it’s drawing close to an end.
“Wild” is based on the book “Wild: Lost and Found on the Pacific Crest Trail” by author Cheryl Strayed who had originally sent the book to Reese Witherspoon with a note that read “I can’t imagine who else would do this.” Reese was soon attached as a producer and, through serendipity, she found director Lisa Cholodenko (“The Kids Are All Right”) who had also been pursuing the book as a potential project. Unfortunately Cholodenko, who had also been adapting the novel, fell out of the project but Nick Hornby (“High Fidelity“) came onboard to continue adapting the work.
Though there still isn’t a director attached to the project, Fox Searchlight has acquired the worldwide rights for the film and Reese Witherspoon is now confirmed to star in the central role. “We are so excited to be working with Fox Searchlight to bring ‘Wild’ to the screen. It is an extraordinary company that continually strives to bring original, inspirational films to the marketplace. We are thrilled to collaborate with them on ‘Wild,’” the actress said in a statement.
Filming is set to begin sometime in the late fall so we should have a director attached in the coming months.