Lionsgate is in advanced negotiations to acquire rights to “Burial Rites,” a movie package that will reteam Jennifer Lawrence with her “Hunger Games” director Gary Ross, an individual familiar with the project has told TheWrap.
Based on the novel written by Hannah Kent and published by Little, Brown, “Burial Rites” will find Lawrence playing a woman accused of murder in Iceland in 1829, back when men scoffed at the notion of women committing violent crimes. The story features a potent romantic element that is expected to attract top-tier male talent.
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Allison Shearmur will produce the movie, which CAA began shopping to studios last week. Lionsgate hasn’t sealed a deal yet, but it’s expected to close one in the coming days.
Lawrence and Ross are clearly eager to work together again, having set up an adaptation of John Steinbeck’s classic novel “East of Eden” at Universal and Imagine last month.
Of course, both of these movies will likely spend years in development, as Ross is currently focused on casting Disney’s “Peter and the Starcatcher” and Lawrence has a full dance card that includes two more “Hunger Games” sequels. She’s also attached to star in Lionsgate’s “The Glass Castle,” the Chris Terrio-scripted drama “The Ends of the Earth” and Susanne Bier’s FilmNation drama “The Rules of Inheritance.”
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Oscar winner Lawrence will soon be seen alongside Christian Bale and her “Silver Linings Playbook” co-star Bradley Cooper in David O. Russell’s “American Hustle.”
Lionsgate will release “The Hunger Games: Catching Fire” on Nov. 22.