In news that will surprise no one, a new Stephen King adaptation is in the works. In the Tall Grass is a novella written by King with his son Joe Hill and was originally published in Esquire magazine, across two parts in summer 2012.
Handling the adaptation is Vincenzo Natali, writer/director of horror cult classic Cube and the less fondly-remembered Splice. Natali’s most recent work has been as a regular director on the superlative TV adaptation of Hannibal – he is penned in for two episodes of the upcoming third season – so his horror genre skills have certainly not laid dormant.
It will be the umpteenth adaptation of King’s work but will only be the second feature-length version to be bestowed on Joe Hill; he himself handled scripting duties on the 2013 adaptation of his first novel Horns. From StephenKing.com:
In the Tall Grass begins with a sister and brother who pull off to the side of the road after hearing a young boy crying for help from beyond the tall grass. Within minutes they are disoriented, in deeper than seems possible, and they’ve lost one another. The boy’s cries are more and more desperate. What follows is a terrifying, entertaining, and masterfully told tale, as only Stephen and Joe can deliver.
Natali will both write and direct the project, which is set up Copperheart Entertainment, with principle photography due to start this September on location in Toronto. The company will look to find international pre-sales at the Cannes Film Festival, which kicks off this week.
Source: Screen Daily, StephenKing.com