In news of the latest studio to graft a top-notch literary talent onto a high-concept adaptation, Variety reports that David Auburn, whose play Proof won the 2001 Tony Award for Best Play and the 2001 Pulitzer Prize for drama, has been hired by Warner Bros. to adapt Deborah Harkness‘s novel A Discovery of Witches.
The novel concerns a reluctant scholar (who happens to be a descendant of the first woman burned at the Salem witch trials) and her discovery of an ancient, bewitched alchemical manuscript. From there, all manner of witches, magic, vampires and “daemons” enter the picture in what sounds like an at least fairly literate stab at an original supernatural universe, a la Twilight, or True Blood.
Auburn’s screenplay credits include the Anthony Hopkins–Gwenyth Paltrow-starring adaptation of Proof and The Lake House. A Discovery of Witches might just be in Auburn’s wheelhouse, despite the supernatural hook. The story has a refreshing literacy to its core concept, and could work.
Warner’s veteran Denise Di Novi and Allison Greenspan are producing. As this kind-of-promising-sounding project is still in the early stages of development, expect more details as they surface.
Proof is a fantastic play rendered stiff and airless by the film version, despite flashes of go-for-broke acting. It is hardly uncommon to see critically-beloved novelists hacking out scripts (Michael Chabon‘s nixed take on Spider-Man 2, for instance), and if Auburn can keep things lively, Warners might just add another title to the growing list of potential franchises needed to replace Harry Potter.
Does this project sound interesting? Have you read the book?