Thirteen-year-old "Jeopardy!" champion Thomas Horn has landed the lead role in Stephen Daldry's big screen adaptation of Jonathan Safran Foer's novel "Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close," an individual familiar with the project has confirmed to TheWrap.
While there's no doubt Horn is a brilliant teenager, he'll certainly learn a lot from his two co-stars, Oscar winners Tom Hanks and Sandra Bullock, who will play his parents.
The acclaimed story follows a precocious 9-year-old boy who struggles to cope with his father's death on 9/11. When he discovers a key in his father's belongings, he sets out on a cathartic journey to discover what it unlocks.
Scott Rudin is producing the movie, which will be a co-production between Paramount and Warner Bros. Oscar winner Eric Roth ("Forrest Gump") wrote the script for the drama.
Horn won $31,800 on "Jeopardy!" in October after wagering $12,000 before the final round. Ironically, he proclaimed himself to be relatively unfamiliar with pop culture ... and now he's a part of it.
Daldry will start shooting "Extremely Loud" early next year.
Horn is represented by ICM, which also reps up-and-coming young actors such as "True Grit" star Hailee Steinfeld and Kodi Smit-McPhee of "The Road" and "Let Me In" fame.
Horn's casting was first reported by Deadline.
