Books, Films, News, Women Writers

Elizabeth Banks to Produce Adaptation of Tech Novel “Uncanny Valley”

Banks on “Jimmy Kimmel Live”/YouTube

Multi-hyphenate Elizabeth Banks is adding yet another project to her docket. The actor-producer-director has signed on to produce a film adaptation of “Uncanny Valley” for Universal Pictures, Variety reports. The tech book hasn’t been published yet, but it still managed to cause a “highly competitive bidding situation” involving several suitors. Banks and Max Handelman are producing via Brownstone Productions, and Michael De Luca (“Fifty Shades of Grey”) is producing via Michael De Luca Productions.

Originally published as a blog post in 2016, the story for “Uncanny Valley” comes from author Anna Wiener. The post “detailed her life at a startup on its last gasps, as the workers grapple with their IPO dreams evaporating and dust off resumes,” the source details. “The novel version of that initial post is said to deal with Weiner’s transition from the world of publishing to Silicon Valley life.” Weiner will exec produce the film, and the novel is tentatively scheduled for publication in early 2019 by Farrar, Straus and Giroux.

Earlier this week the “Pitch Perfect” franchise crossed over $500 million at the box office. Banks produces and stars in the films, and directed the second installment of the franchise about an a cappella group.

Banks’ upcoming gigs include directing and producing the “Charlie’s Angels” reboot and a film adaptation of “The Paper Bag Princess.”

A number of other women-centric tech projects are in the works. Cathy Schulman’s Welle Entertainment has acquired the film and TV rights to “Alpha Girls,” a nonfiction book about the women of Silicon Valley described as “‘Hidden Figures’ meets ‘The Social Network,’” and a comedy about an all-female incubator from “Bridesmaids” director Paul Feig and “New Girl’s” Kim Rosenstock in development with Freeform.

Banks can be seen in “Pitch Perfect 3,” in theaters now.


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