After grossing almost $95 million on the 3D revamp of The Lion King, director Roger Allers is back to original projects. Deadline reports that the director’s been tapped to adapt and direct the animated feature The Prophet for Salma Hayek‘s Ventanarosa Productions, which will be produced by Clark Peterson and Senkowski.

The feature is based on the classic book by Lebanese writer, philosopher, and artist Khalil Gibran, one which has sold over 100 million copies to date. Allers isn’t the only director lending his talents — other filmmakers have either signed on or are in discussions to helm specific segments of the film. Allers will direct the opening, closing and frame parts of the feature alongside Tomm Moore (The Secret of Kells), Sylvain Chomet (The Triplets of Belleville), John Stevenson (Kung Fu Panda), Marjane Satrapi (Persepolis), Chris Landreth (Ryan), Nina Paley (Sita Sings the Blues), Bill Plympton (Guard Dog and Your Face), and Kunio Kato (Tsumiki No Ie).

As if the directing bill isn’t impressive enough for you, Gilbran has scribed over 30 works of fiction, prose poems and forged an impressive legacy after his death in 1931. The Prophet has been translated in over 40 languages and is Gilbran‘s most well-known and successful work. Here’s a synopsis of the book.

The prophet, Al-Mustafa who has lived in the foreign city of Orphalese for 12 years is about to board a ship which will carry him home. He is stopped by a group of people, with whom he discusses topics such as life and the human condition. The book is divided into chapters dealing with love, marriage, children, giving, eating and drinking, work, joy and sorrow, houses, clothes, buying and selling, crime and punishment, laws, freedom, reason and passion, pain, self-knowledge, teaching, friendship, talking, time, good and evil, prayer, pleasure, beauty, religion, and death.

The Prophet will begin pre-production later this month.

What are your initial thoughts on The Prophet?