Lily Collins signs on for 'Pride and Prejudice and Zombies'
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Against all odds (or most of them, anyway), the long-troubled film adaptation of Pride and Prejudice and Zombies has been resurrected from the proverbial grave. And it's even got an actress attached, to boot!
Lily Collins has signed on to star in the adaptation of Seth Grahame-Smith's hit mashup novel, which embellished (to put it mildly) on Jane Austen's 1813 literary classic, Pride and Prejudice.
The film was originally developed under Lionsgate with Natalie Portman attached to star. However, the film would go on to suffer through a storied, troubled production. The revolving door of directors, including David O. Russell, Mike White, and Craig Gillespie, would have been enough to scandalize any project. But the actresses came and went as well, with names such as Scarlett Johansson, Mia Wasikowska and Anne Hathaway rumored to be attached to the project, before ultimately passing on the lead role altogether.
However, the producers -- Portman, Annette Savitch, Richard Kelly and Sean McKittrick -- kept faith in the project, securing a producer and financier in Panorama, an Italian film and production company. The film is expected to sell at Cannes.
Collins, most recently seen in last year's Mirror, Mirror, will be working under helmer Burr Steers, who has been hired to direct the film. Steers is best known as the director behind the critically-panned Zac Efron vehicles 17 Again and Charlie St. Cloud. I'm not personally familiar with the films of Mr. Steers, but hey, somebody's gotta direct this thing. And he could well knock it out of the park, for all anyone knows.
So with that all out of the way, all we need now is a big-screen version of Jane Austen's Fight Club.
