Another day, another Stephen King adaptation over at Lionsgate. THR reports that the studio optioned the rights to the horror novelist’s 1999 novel “The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon,” with “Strange Darling” director JT Mollner on board to helm the project and write the adapted screenplay. It’ll be Mollner’s second-straight King script: he’s also the scribe for Francis Lawrence‘s adaptation of “The Long Walk,” one of King’s early Richard Bachman novels, in theaters on September 12.
“The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon” follows a nine-year-old girl named Trisha as she struggles to stay alive after getting lost in the woods alone. Her only means of help? Her Walkman radio that plays baseball games to keep her company, and the love she has for pitcher Tom Gordon, who begins to manifest in ways that may save her life.
Moller reunites with producer Roy Lee for the adaptation after working together on “The Long Walk” and “Strange Darling.” Lee’s involvement in a King adaptation should go without saying at this point. He’s helped produce several of them in recent years, like “It” and its sequel, “Doctor Sleep,” and “Salem’s Lot.” Christine Romero will also produce (her late husband George A. Romero was once attached to an earlier version of the project), as will Ryan Silbert, and Andrew Childs. Nathan Kahane will also be involved as a producer as he steps away from his post as Lionsgate Motion Picture Group president. Meredith Wieck oversees the project for Lionsgate with Pavan Kalidindi, with Phil Stirna negotiating the deal for the studio.
“JT is a filmmaker we believe has a bright future,” said Lionsgate Motion Picture Group president Erin Westerman in a press statement. “Throughout his work, he creates characters, and especially young characters, that are so compelling, heartbreaking, and emotional that they pop off the screen. And of course, that’s what Stephen King does on the page as well. The story of survival and perseverance in “The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon” is timeless. We’ve loved this tale for a long time, and JT is the perfect choice to adapt and direct this King fan favorite.”
Stay tuned for more details about “The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon” as it approaches a shooting schedule.
