The movie adaptation of J.D. Vance's bestseller, which screenplay is written by Vanessa Taylor, will see Howard producing with longtime partner Brian Grazer.
- January 26, 2019
AceShowbiz - Netflix bosses have swooped on director Ron Howard's movie adaptation of J.D. Vance's bestseller "Hillbilly Elegy" after winning a contested Hollywood bidding war.
The streaming service's executives will finance the film to the tune of $45 million (£34.2 million), according to Deadline.
Howard, who is also producing the project with longtime partner Brian Grazer, will direct a screenplay written by "The Shape of Water"'s Vanessa Taylor.
Cast details and a start date have yet to be announced.
Howard and Grazer won a book rights auction for the film rights in 2017.
Vance's memoir, "Hillbilly Elegy: A Memoir of a Family and Culture in Crisis", chronicles his upbringing in one of the poorest areas of America.
Meanwhile, busy Howard is currently in post-production on a Luciano Pavarotti documentary, and he has also announced plans to make a film about the recovery project in Paradise, California, which was ravaged by wildfires last year (2018), for National Geographic Documentary Films.
"Rebuilding Paradise will take a microcosmic look at the growing global repercussions of climate change through a community destroyed by one of the deadliest and most destructive wildfires in U.S. history," a press release reads.
Over 50,000 people were left homeless in November, when fire ripped through the town, scorching 153,000 acres and destroying over 14,000 homes.
Netflix Swoops On Ron Howard’s ‘Hillbilly Elegy’ Casting Suggestions? https://t.co/Pkn7XalAzL
— Ron Howard (@RealRonHoward) January 25, 2019
"The people of Paradise lost everything in the blink of an eye," Howard says. "The way in which the citizens are coming together to rebuild is beautiful and hopeful - but no one should have to live through this. Theirs is a cautionary tale about the impending effects of climate change and what it takes to restore the communities ravaged by it. Paradise could be any of us."
The film will follow "the refugees of Paradise" - the families, volunteers, community leaders, school and government officials and first responders - as they "come together to rebuild amid the devastation of natural disaster".
The fires hit home for Howard, who has relatives in the area and had previously spent time in Paradise.
