Catherine Hardwicke is getting back into the YA game with an adaptation of Jerry Spinelli’s 2000 bestseller “Stargirl.”
The “Twilight” director reportedly sign on to helm after reading Kristin Hahn’s adapted screenplay, which centers on a new girl in school who is at first embraced, then shunned, for her home-schooled, nonconformist ways.
Production is set to start this fall.
“This is one of those stories and characters that stir your imagination and steal your heart and just stick with you forever. I am thrilled to have the chance to adapt this beloved novel, and I can’t imagine anyone more uniquely equipped to bring this story to life than Catherine Hardwicke, a Stargirl in her own right,” said Hahn.
The director’s other films aimed at girls and young women include “Red Riding Hood” and “Thirteen.” Hardwicke’s next film, the best-friend drama “Miss You Already,” has just wrapped.
Here’s the “Stargirl” book synopsis:
Stargirl. From the day she arrives at quiet Mica High in a burst of color and sound, the hallways hum with the murmur of “Stargirl, Stargirl.” She captures Leo Borlock’s heart with just one smile. She sparks a school-spirit revolution with just one cheer. The students of Mica High are enchanted. At first.
Then they turn on her. Stargirl is suddenly shunned for everything that makes her different, and Leo, panicked and desperate with love, urges her to become the very thing that can destroy her: normal. In this celebration of nonconformity, Newbery Medalist Jerry Spinelli weaves a tense, emotional tale about the perils of popularity and the thrill and inspiration of first love.
[via Variety, The Guardian]
