Peter Sarsgaard, most recently seen in villainous fashion in the newly-released blockbuster Green Lantern, is planning to make his directorial debut with an adaptation of Christopher McDougall‘s best-selling book Born to Run: A Hidden Tribe, Superathletes, and the Greatest Race the World Has Never Seen.

Sarsgaard also plans to write the adaptation of the nonfiction piece himself, which will make him more unlikely to take on the lead acting duties himself. Currently, the benefit of the doubt in that category belongs to Sarsgaard‘s brother-in-law, Jake Gyllenhaal, who has been confirmed by the author as being involved with the project in some capacity. [Hitfix]

Here is an excerpt from an Amazon book description, which sheds some light on the autobiographical events that are depicted in McDougall‘s book:

Isolated by the most savage terrain in North America, the reclusive Tarahumara Indians of Mexico’s deadly Copper Canyons are custodians of a lost art. For centuries they have practiced techniques that allow them to run hundreds of miles without rest and chase down anything from a deer to an Olympic marathoner while enjoying every mile of it. Their superhuman talent is matched by uncanny health and serenity, leaving the Tarahumara immune to the diseases and strife that plague modern existence. With the help of Caballo Blanco, a mysterious loner who lives among the tribe, the author was able not only to uncover the secrets of the Tarahumara but also to find his own inner ultra-athlete, as he trained for the challenge of a lifetime: a fifty-mile race through the heart of Tarahumara country pitting the tribe against an odd band of Americans, including a star ultramarathoner, a beautiful young surfer, and a barefoot wonder.

Kathleen Kennedy and Frank Marshall are signed on to produce the film, which has yet to complete its search for financing. Other than Green Lantern, Sarsgaard has no more films slated for a 2011 release, though he is signed on to star in Very Good Girls, an intriguing project from Naomi Foner — who will be making her own directorial debut — that co-stars Dustin Hoffman, Dakota Fanning, and Elizabeth Olsen.

Do you think Sarsgaard will make a successful directorial debut? Are you familiar with the source material?

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