Having not spent my childhood as an eyeliner-wearing outcast, my knowledge of the Emily the Strange character is quite limited, leading to lots of personal speculation, such as “how do you find narrative in a lunchbox?” The truth is, you don’t, but luckily for fans of Ms. The Strange, there’s actually a wealth of material to mine for a feature film that goes far beyond cheap tee shirts from Hot Topic (but I don’t put it past anyone to make a film about based on a tee shirt). That’s good news for screenwriter Melisa Wallack, who has just signed on to write the Emily the Strange feature film script.
Wallack most recently penned the script for Tarsem Singh’s untitled Snow White project over at Relativity (that’s the one with Lilly Collins, Armie Hammer, and Julia Roberts), but she’s also got two Black List projects under her belt, 2007’s Meet Bill (which she also co-directed) and Science Fair (currently in development). If you’re going to turn a logo into a film, signing on a talented screenwriter is a good way to start.
First appearing on stickers (no, really) in 1991, the creepy little kiddo now has four graphic novellas, a Dark Horse comic book series, and a four-book series of young adult novels from HarperCollins to her name. Artist and skateboarder Rob Reger created Emily, and he’s stayed committed to her evolution, having also co-written those YA novels with Jessica Gruner.
The Emily the Strange feature film has been in development since 2008, thanks to Dark Horse Entertainment. Universal will make the film, with Dark Horse’s Mike Richardson serving as producer alongside Reger and Dark Horses’s Keith Goldberg, who are executive-producing. There’s not much known about its plot at this point, but it will reportedly “tell the origin of the punk and gothic figure and how she comes to gain her abilities that fuse technology and imagination.” Also, there appears to be a heavy emphasis on Emily’s four cats (Sabbath, Nee-Chee, Miles, and Mystery), so consider my ticket purchased.
Chloe Moretz signed on to play the titular character back in September of last year, and she is still currently on board for the role, adding to her resume of off-kilter kid roles. [THR]
