Stephen King's 'Big Driver' Lifetime Adaptation Adds Maria Bello and Joan Jett

Maria Bello is one of Hollywood's most versatile actresses, dating back to her appearances in such Oscar-nominated character studies as The Cooler and A History of Violence, although most will know her from Coyote Ugly, Thank You For Smoking, and the Grown Ups movies.

Now, however, Bello is headed to Lifetime. The actress will star in the network's adaptation of the Stephen King horror novella Big Driver. Bello joins Oscar winner Olympia Dukakis, and NCIS guest star Will Harris. But the most interesting addition to the cast is rock star Joan Jett, who joins the project in an as-yet unspecified role.

This is the first time King has collaborated with Lifetime, and with any luck, it goes better than his collaboration with CBS, which hasn't exactly made for stellar television.

Further details via TVLine.com:

Big Driver, which was featured in King’s collection Full Dark, No Stars, centers on Bello’s Tess Thorne (Bello), a famous and revered mystery and thriller writer who faces a long drive home following a book signing engagement. While driving on a lonely stretch of New England road, her tire blows out, leaving her stranded. Relieved when another driver (Harris) stops and offers assistance, Tess quickly discovers her savior is actually her assailant, a serial killer who repeatedly assaults her. Left for dead in a drainage pipe to rot with the bodies of his other victims, Tess escapes and makes her way safely home. With her fragile mind beginning to unravel, she is determined to find her rapist and seek revenge, as payback is the only thing holding her together.

Richard Christian Matheson (Masters of Horror, Happy Face Killer) is penning the adaptation and Mikael Salomon (Drew Peterson: Untouchable) is directing.

Well, Big Driver is one of the more intense King stories that has yet to be adapted, so this could end up being a hit for Lifetime along the lines of Flowers In the Attic. But then, I'm not sure what kind of crossover audience there is between Stephen King novels and V.C. Andrews adaptations. Should be interesting to see how this turns out though.

Credit: NBC