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Theres a reason why Bridge to Terabithia is often ranked among cinemas saddest movies the Bridge to Terabithia ending is heartbreaking. Directed by Gbor Csup, the movie is a poignant exploration of childhood, imagination, and loss. It's an adaptation of the beloved 1977 childrens novel by Katherine Paterson, co-scripted by her son David Paterson, and delicately navigates the complex emotional landscape of youth. Celebrated for its heartfelt narrative, the film, like the book, has become a staple in educational settings, although it has also faced challenges due to its portrayal of grief and loss.

The story centers on Jesse Aarons (Josh Hutcherson), a 12-year-old who often feels isolated and bullied at school. His life takes a transformative turn when he befriends Leslie Burke (AnnaSophia Robb), a spirited and imaginative new neighbor. The pair find an abandoned treehouse and a rope swing where they conjure up the titular Terabithia a fantasy world...

Disney's Bridge To Terabithia came out in 2007 and was based on the children's book of the same name by Katherine Paterson. The story is about two children named Jess and Leslie, who become friends and create an imaginary world called Terabithia to escape life's problems. It's also a story about a child dealing with grief and the loss of their best friend, as the major event of Bridge To Terabithia is when Leslie drowns after going into the woods to Terabithia by herself. Bridge to Terabithia is one of the beloved, classic children's books often taught in schools.

Fantasy is a beautiful genre to escape when dealing with stressful or tragic life situations, especially for children. Often, fantasy narratives can help children explain or process something tough through the fantastical metaphor of a creature or place they associate the real-life event with. They can cope with life, express their feelings,...

Fantasy stories have been around for centuries, finding popularity in books before gracing the big screen. Creating entire universes and building new worlds is no easy feat, leaving only the most talented of writers to attempt writing the next big story. The first fantasy movie dates back to Alice Guy's The Cabbage Fairy, filmed in 1896, but the fantasy movie genre didn't become prominent until after the 1950s.

Between magic, the supernatural, science-fiction, folklore and myths, the world of fantasy films is endless. From large franchises such as The Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter to smaller and one-off movies, the 2000s truly revolutionized the genre, especially thanks to the advancements in CGI and VFX technology.

Related: 10 Best Animated Sci-Fi & Fantasy Shows To Stream Now

The Water Horse: Legend Of The Deep (2007)

Based on Dick King-Smith's novel of a similar name, The Water Horse: Legend of the Deep...

The magical world of Hogwarts, created by J. K. Rowling, has captivated and inspired millions of people around the globe since the Harry Potter franchise began. The series follows young wizard Harry and his amazing magical adventures as he learns to use spells, concoct potions, test his skills in magic duels, and play Quidditch with his magical friends.

Through his journey, we see him encounter outlandish magical creatures that aren’t found in our muggle world – dragon’s smoke-phoenixes, werewolves, and a host of other magical beasts are all part of this fantastic fantasy story that has won over fans since its start.

Since the iconic debut of this franchise in 2001, magical adventures have become a staple in the film world. This franchise quickly became one of the most beloved adventure series of our time, turning Harry Potter into a global icon with a massive and loyal fan base that remains today.

With production expected to start on Monday in the U.K., sources tell Variety that Warner Bros. has postponed the third installment of “Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them.”

Like with so many productions that have already stalled due to the coronavirus pandemic, it’s unknown how long the postponement will be or whether it will have an effect on the release date.

“Fantastic Beasts” stars Eddie Redmayne, Katherine Paterson, Zoe Kravitz and Dan Folger. David Yates is returning to direct.

The series is one of WB’s top franchises, with the previous two films grossing more then $1.4 billion at the worldwide box office.

A significant portion of the film is set in Brazil.

The movie is one of the last major Hollywood productions to delay its shoot. Warner Bros. announced on Friday that it would be postponing “The Batman” while it moved locations to Liverpool, but was holding...

It’s almost summer, and you know what that means: Some of last year’s best films are finally beginning to stream on Netflix! It means other things too, we suppose, but none of them could possibly be as important as the ability to watch Agnès Varda heart-bursting new documentary whenever the mood strikes (even die-hard defenders of the theatrical experience can appreciate the magic of being able to re-visit their favorite part of “Faces Places” anywhere they can find a cell phone signal).

Fingers crossed that the streaming giant will give a second life to the under-seen “God’s Own Country,” a beautiful 2017 release that never got the degree of attention — or the number of screens — that it deserved when it came stateside in October. These recent essentials highlight the strong crop of movies that are new on Netflix this month, as the service complements the best of 2017 with...

Exclusive: Katherine Paterson, whose Ya books were the basis of movies including Bridge to Terabithia and The Great Gilly Hopkins, will see more of her works hit the big and small screens. Paterson’s production company Arcady Bay and Meteor 17 have inked an exclusive five-picture development deal for the IP. The projects will be adapted by screenwriter and Arcady Bay creative principal David Paterson, who co-wrote Terbithia and wrote Gilly Hopkins. The properties ID’d in…...

A tough, simple story about a foster kid whose path to finding a family and a home is not an easy one. There are no platitudes here, just bittersweet truth. I’m “biast” (pro): desperate for movies about girls and women

I’m “biast” (con): nothing

I have not read the source material

(what is this about? see my critic’s minifesto)

Another beloved children’s novel by Katherine Paterson — she also wrote Bridge to Terabithia, which became a lovely and heartbreaking film a few years back — comes to the big screen… though mostly to the small one, because The Great Gilly Hopkins is being released on only a handful of screens; most fans of the book will have to catch it on VOD (or on DVD in a few months). For those not familiar with the book, it’s not about wizards and it’s not set in a postapocalyptic dystopia,...

Kids seeing their favorite books turned into movies can be a pop-culture rite of passage, whether the results are satisfying or heartbreakingly disappointing. To that point, the movie version of Katherine Paterson’s classic children’s novel The Great Gilly Hopkins may serve as an early lesson for young readers and movie-watchers on the way that a film can be utterly faithful to its source and still not feel quite right.

This particular lesson has been a long time coming. Paterson’s book came out in 1978, and it’s surprising that it’s taken nearly 40 years for a feature version to materialize—not because its story of headstrong 11-year-old Galadriel “Gilly” Hopkins entering a new foster home is irresistibly cinematic, but because usually its status as a beloved piece of children’s literature is more than enough. But Gilly Hopkins turns out to be deceptively difficult to crack ...

Exclusive: Stephen Herek family film starring Sophie Nelisse set for October release.

Lionsgate Premiere, the studio’s specialty division, has boarded Us distribution on completed comedy-drama The Great Gilly Hopkins.

The Katherine Paterson adaptation, directed by Stephen Herek (Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure), will get a multiplatform release from October 7, with theatrical distribution in key cities.

In the family title, Sophie Nelisse (The Book Thief) plays as a wisecracking 11-year-old who is moved between foster homes but meets her match in the shape of foster mum Maime Trotter (Kathy Bates).

Julia Stiles, Bill Cobbs, Octavia Spencer and Glenn Close co-star.

Script comes from David Paterson (Bridge To Terabithia) who produced with Bill Teitler (Jumanji) and home improvement and energy sector businessman Brian Kennedy of Latium Enterprises, majority owner of UK rugby leage team Sale Sharks.

The film marks Kennedy’s second signficant film investment after 2014 Cannes drama The Homesman.

William Kay and Eve Schoukroun are executive producers...

Even if you're not a big reader of young adult fiction, you may have seen the advertisements for the new Chloë Grace Moretz movie The 5th Wave and suspected that it looks like the kind of movie that was adapted from a Ya franchise. All the elements are there: a post-apocalyptic dystopia, a winsome female protagonist who stands up to become the world's champion, an imperiled younger sibling and the winning combination of light science fiction and teenaged angst. The 5th Wave is the first in a trilogy of books by Rick Yancey about a group of underage rebels fighting off an alien invasion.

Even if you're not a big reader of young adult fiction, you may have seen the advertisements for the new Chloë Grace Moretz movie The 5th Wave and suspected that it looks like the kind of movie that was adapted from a Ya franchise. All the elements are there: a post-apocalyptic dystopia, a winsome female protagonist who stands up to become the world's champion, an imperiled younger sibling and the winning combination of light science fiction and teenaged angst. The 5th Wave is the first in a trilogy of books by Rick Yancey about a group of underage rebels fighting off an alien invasion.

Pacific Standard Time

Alex Russell ("Chronicle"), Willa Holand ("Arrow") and Miguel Gomez ("The Strain") are set to join Benjamin and Orson Cummings' "Pacific Standard Time".

The story is described as a dark and sexy thriller involving 20-somethings trying to live above their means and getting involved in a love triangle that goes terribly wrong. [Source: THR]

The Canterville Ghost

Freddie Highmore ("Bates Motel"), Imelda Staunton ("Maleficent") and Toby Jones ("The Hunger Games") have joined the voice cast of Kim Burdon's animated adaptation of Oscar Wilde's "The Canterville Ghost".

Old comedy chums Hugh Laurie and Stephen Fry, along with Miranda Hart, are also part of the comedy which follows a ghost who has been haunting his ancestral home in rural England for three centuries. He's successfully scared off every previous tenant, until the Otis family from America moves in. [Source: THR]

The Great Gilly Hopkins

Julia Stiles ("The Bourne Ultimatum") and Bill Cobbs...

• Charlize Theron is reportedly in talks to star in and produce American Express, an indie for director Nash Edgerton. Plot details are being kept under wraps as the film is shopped at Cannes. Theron can be seen next in Seth MacFarlane’s A Million Ways to Die in the West (May 30). [The Wrap]

• Alec Baldwin (30 Rock) has been cast in Warren Beatty’s untitled Howard Hughes pic about the reclusive mogul’s assistant (Alden Erenreich) and his burgeoning relationship with Lily Collins. Baldwin will play Hughes’ lawyer Bob Mayhew. Annette Bening, Martin Sheen, and Matthew Broderick will also star. [Deadline]

• Liam Hemsworth (The Hunger Games...

Sylvia Fay/Lee Genick & Associates Casting is currently seeking for the feature film “The Great Gilly Hopkins.” This feature film is based on the Katherine Paterson novel about the 11-year-old wisecracking foster child, Gilly Hopkins. Several background actors are being sought, and the film stars Kathy Bates, Sophie Nélisse, Glenn Close, Donald Glover, and others! For more details, check out the casting notice for “The Great Gilly Hopkins” here, and be sure to check out the rest of our audition listings!

Exclusive: German distributor picks up Winterbottom, Herek titles.

German distributor Concorde has swooped on WestEnd market duo The Face of an Angel [pictured] and The Great Gilly Hopkins at the Efm.

Deals were struck between WestEnd MD Eve Schoukroun and Guy Amon and Markus Zimmer of indie powerhouse Concorde.

Director Michael Winterbottom’s much-discussed The Face of an Angel, currently in post-production, stars Daniel Bruhl, Kate Beckinsale and model-turned-actress Cara Delevigne.

The film follows a British filmmaker (Bruhl) who goes to Italy to study the aftermath of a high-profile murder case.

Winterbottom reiterated to Screen over the weekend that the film is “not a film about Amanda Knox,” despite similarities to the real-life case of Knox and Raffaele Solecito.

As previously reported by Screen, rising star Sophie Nelisse (The Book Thief) is to play the title role in director Stephen Herek’s feature The Great Gilly Hopkins, alongside Glenn Close, Kathy Bates, Danny Glover and [link...

First Law

Mads Mikkelsen ("Hannibal," "Casino Royale") is set to star in Diego Rafecas' drama "First Law". Set in the jungles of Argentina, Armand Assante and Adriana Barraza co-star.

Based on a true story, the plot centers on two brothers — one under the wing of a shaman, the other working for a corrupt corporation — who must choose where their loyalties lie when their ancestral home faces destruction. [Source: Deadline]

The Fixer

Melissa Leo will join James Franco in Ian Olds' "The Fixer", a film based on the novel by Bernard Malamud. Filming takes place in California and Morocco this Summer.

Franco plays a war journalist who has been in Afghanistan but suddenly finds himself doing crime reporting in Northern California. [Source: Showbiz 411]

Sylvie's Love

Larenz Tate ("Rescue Me") will star in and produce Eugene J. Ashe's "Sylvie's Love" which is set against New York's jazz scene in the late-50s and early-60s.

Following her well-received turn in the 2013 film adaptation of The Book Thief, young actress Sophie Nelisse has added another literary character to her upcoming slate – Gilly Hopkins.

First published in 1978, ‘The Great Gilly Hopkins’ was written by Katherine Paterson, and won the prestigious Newbery Award which recognises achievements in American literature for children. The heroine of the story, Galadriel ‘Gilly’ Hopkins, is a highly intelligent pre-teen who has been made cynical and bitter following years of rejection by a wide variety of foster families. Things change, however, when she is placed with the formidable Maime Trotter – a highly respected, if unorthodox, foster parent. As Gilly rails against her new authority figure, she discovers that events in her life are heading in an unexpected direction.

The author Katherine Paterson is also the pen behind Bridge To Terabithia, which was adapted for film in 2007. Like that adaptation, the screenplay for Gilly Hopkins...

Sophie Nelisse has opted for another literary adaptation for her next project, although it's a little bit different to The Book Thief. She's signed on as the title character of The Great Gilly Hopkins, from the young adult novel by Katherine Paterson. Glenn Close, Kathy Bates, Danny Glover and Octavia Spencer are her adult co-stars, and Stephen Herek (Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure, Critters) is the director.The story, obviously enough, revolves around the fractious and rebellious Gilly (short for Galadriel) and her experiences in foster care. Landing with the Trotters (lead by fearsome matriarch Maime, Bates' character) she hatches an escape plan to get back to her birth mother. But when she's finally reunited with her drop-out hippy mom - through the conduit of her grandmother - she finds that maybe she prefers the Trotters after all.The rest of the announced cast haven't been publicly matched up with their characters so far,...

Here's a bit more casting news for you today: Melissa Leo and James Franco are set to star in Ian Olds' The Fixer. Sophie Nelisse (The Book Thief) will star in the title role of The Great Gilly Hopkins for director Stephen Herek; Glenn Close, Kathy Bates, Danny Glover and Octavia Spencer also star. Cuba Gooding Jr. will star in director and co-writer Allan Ungar's action thriller, Gridlocked. Hit the jump for more on each picture First up from The Playlist is news of Leo and Franco in The Fixer. The film follows "Osman, an Afghan journalist exiled from his war-torn country to a small bohemian community in Northern California. When he attempts to turn his menial job on the local police blotter into "Afghan-style" coverage of local crime, he gets drawn into the backwoods of this small town—a shadow Northern California where sex is casual, true...

The busy Octavia Spencer and Danny Glover have both booked roles in the film adaptation of the Ya novel The Great Gilly Hopkins, written by author Katherine Paterson, which will star relative newcomer Sophie Nelisse, in a tale about a wisecracking 12-year old who is moved repeatedly from foster home to foster home, outwitting them all, until she meets her match in Maime Trotter (who will be played by Kathy Bates). Spencer, Glover, Bates and Nelisse will be joined in the film's cast by Glenn Close, with Stephen Herek (Mr. Holland's Opus, The Mighty Ducks) directing. The project is being packaged and presented at the European Film Market in Berlin (which...

After making a splash with a fantastic performance in The Book Thief, young Sophie Nelisse has lined up a new adaptation, this time of a book geared towards kids. Variety has word that Nelisse will lead The Great Gilly Hopkins, an adaptation of the Newbery Award-winning book of the same name by Katherine Paterson. The book follows a wisecracking, gum-chewing 12-year-old named Gilly (Nelisse), moved from foster home to foster home, outwitting them all. But when placed in the home of Maime Trotter, the most unorthodox foster mom yet (Kathy Bates), Gilly fights her way out, but her life takes an unexpected turn. Nelisse will also be surrounded by some impressive talents like Glenn Close, Danny Glover and Octavia Spencer. They'll all be directed by Stephen Herek, who's heyday was in the 90s with films like Mr. Holland's Opus, The Three Musketeers and 101 Dalmatians (which saw Close as Disney's iconic...

Exclusive: The Book Thief star Nelisse to lead cast, April 9 start of shoot.

Rising star Sophie Nelisse (The Book Thief, Monsieur Lazhar) is to play the title role in director Stephen Herek’s feature The Great Gilly Hopkins, alongside Glenn Close, Kathy Bates, Danny Glover and Octavia Spencer.

Co-financed by William Kay and Peyton Kay of Gemmill Media (Rob the Mob, Future Weather) in association with William Teitler, the film is due to start shoot on April 9.

WestEnd Films is representing the film for international sales at the Efm while Bob Berney will be distributing in North America through his newly re-vamped Picturehouse.

Gilly is David Paterson’s adaptation of Katherine Paterson’s young adult novel about a wisecracking, gum-chewing 12-year old (Nelisse) who is moved from foster home to foster home, outwitting them all, until she meets her match in the shape of Maime Trotter (Bates).

Paterson will produce alongside Teitler and John Paterson. Executive producers...

Exclusive: The Book Thief star Nelisse to lead cast, April 9 start of shoot.

Rising star Sophie Nelisse (The Book Thief, Monsieur Lazhar) is to play the title role in director Stephen Herek’s feature The Great Gilly Hopkins, alongside Glenn Close, Kathy Bates, Danny Glover and Octavia Spencer.

Co-financed by William Kay and Peyton Kay of Gemmill Media (Rob the Mob, Future Weather) in association with William Teitler, the film is due to start shoot on April 9.

WestEnd Films is representing the film for international sales at the Efm while Bob Berney will be distributing in North America through his newly re-vamped Picturehouse.

Gilly is David Paterson’s adaptation of Katherine Paterson’s young adult novel about a wisecracking, gum-chewing 12-year old (Nelisse) who is moved from foster home to foster home, outwitting them all, until she meets her match in the shape of Maime Trotter (Bates).

Paterson will produce alongside Teitler and John Paterson. Executive producers...

Here at EW, we’re reminiscing about the pop culture moments that we still can’t get over — no matter how much time has passed.

Fact #1: A great book you read as a kid will always affect you more deeply than a great book read at any other age.

Fact #2: Katherine Paterson’s Newbery Award-winning Bridge to Terabithia happens to be one of the greatest, saddest, most unforgettable children’s books ever written.

Fact #3: During a summer when Jeff Bridges’ long-in-the-works adaptation of The Giver actually seems to be gaining traction and theaters are finally showing a...

• Joel McHale, Robin Williams, and Lauren Graham have signed on star in the new holiday comedy A Friggin’ Christmas Miracle. Lorelai Gilmore and Jeff Winger will play a married couple forced to spend Christmas with their crazy extended family. On Christmas Eve, Boyd (McHale) realizes he forgot to bring his son’s gifts and embarks on an eight-hour road trip with his father (Williams) to retrieve them before his son wakes up. British director Tristram Shapeero, best known for directing television shows like Community and New Girl, will make his feature film debut directing the project. [THR]

• Game of Thrones star...

If I were to ask you what the movies Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure, Don't Tell Mom The Babysitter's Dead and The Mighty Ducks have in common, you might.quite understandably.guess that they were a ubiquitous and cherished part of childhood for those who grew up in the late '80s/early '90s. That's certainly true. But did you know they were all directed by the same man? Stephen Herek cornered the market on kooky kid movies for a while, but in the 2000s got lost amid lackluster fare like Mark Wahlberg's Rock Star and the Angelina Jolie rom-com Life or Something Like It. But news out of the European Film Market suggests Herek is returning to his forte, as he's set to direct an adaptation of Katherine Paterson's celebrated children's novel The Great Gilly Hopkins. Deadline reports Kathy Bates and Danny Glover are attached to star.

There's going to be a movie of The Great Gilly Hopkins, Katherine Paterson's Newbery-winning middle-reader book about a frustrated but determined 11-year-old girl in foster care. According to Screen Daily, Kathy Bates and Danny Glover will co-star as Trotter (Gilly's foster mother) and presumably Mr. Randolph, their neighbor. (There's no Gilly just yet.) Paterson's son, David Paterson, who adapted her book Bridge to Terabithia in 2007, is writing the screenplay, so expect a pretty faithful take on the most intense book you read in third grade. Families, you guys. Sometimes you're born into them, sometimes you find them.

Danny Glover will join Kathy Bates and Avy Kaufman in Picturehouse' adaptation of The Great Gilly Hopkins, with Stephen Herek (101 Dalmatians) directing. The comedy/drama Gilly Hopkins, a Ya novel by Katherine Paterson, follows (according to Screen Daily)... ... a wisecracking 11-year old who is moved between foster homes. When she is placed in the home of Maime Trotter, the strangest foster mum yet (Kathy Bates), she fights her way out - but all doesn’t go according to plan. The project is described as "Annie meets Bridge to Terabithia" - the latter also based on a novel by Paterson, which grossed $140 million worldwide. No...

Much like Cannes, the Berlin film market has many movies up for sale. But they don't all end up getting made. Just saying. A sampling of Berlin 2013 projects hoping for a start-date is below. - Westend Films is teaming with Bob Barney's new label Picturehouse for "The Great Gilly Project," the latest adaptation from "Bridge to Terabithia" author Katherine Paterson. Kathy Bates and Danny Glover are attached to star, while Stephen Herek ("101 Dalmations") is set to helm. The film centers on a wise-cracking foster child who meets her match in unconventional foster mom Maime Trotter (Bates). - Jessica Alba is in final talks to star in "Weightless," believe it or not, as American astronaut Maysie Overall. The original screenlay is penned by Oscar-nominated writer and first-time director Milo Addica ("Monster's Ball"). Myriad Pictures is pre-selling the film at the Berlinale market this week. - Synchronicity...

Bob Berney’s recently relaunched Picturehouse has inked a deal for U.S. rights to Stephen Herek’s The Great Gilly Hopkins, which has Oscar winner Kathy Bates and Danny Glover attached to star. Gilly is an adaptation of Katherine Paterson's Newbery Award-winning young-adult novel about a wisecracking, gum-chewing 11-year-old who is moved from foster home to foster home, outwitting them all. When she is placed in the home of Maime Trotter (Bates), the weirdest foster mom yet, she fights her way out -- but her plan doesn't go as intended. Berlin 2013: Jessica Alba Lined Up to

read more...

All week long, we're celebrating "The New Class," Hollywood's latest group of up-and-coming actors and actresses on the cusp of graduating to greatness. Tune in every day this week for exclusive interviews with these pending graduates and your chance to vote for the student body president - the one you think holds the brightest future in the industry.

He just barely missed out on playing Peter Parker in "The Amazing Spider-Man," but something tells us he won't be away from the funny pages for long. Josh Hutcherson has been voted Most Likely to Play a Superhero as part of The New Class, and we've got a long list of suggested comic book characters that he could bring to life with ease.

But even if he doesn't strap on the spandex anytime soon, Hutcherson's got his fair share of big screen heroism already under his belt and lined up for the future.

Getty Diane Keaton

BookExpo America, the largest trade book fair in North America, gets under way today in New York. Publishers, booksellers, librarians, agents, authors, and readers will gather at the Javits Center for four days of new release promotions, author autograph sessions, rights negotiations, industry panels, and parties.

Jeffrey Eugenides, Anne Enright, Charles Frazier, Erica Jong, Dave Barry, Mo Willems, and Katherine Paterson will appear at book signings or special events. Also: Diane Keaton, Julianne Moore, Jane Lynch, Roger Ebert,...

The people from Scholastic Storybook Treasures are back again, this time honoring Asian traditions and heritage. To celebrate the diversity of our society, all the stories in this DVD are focused on the Chinese. Some of these are old tales from Chinese folklore, while others have been rewritten to suit Asian culture. All-in-all, they aren't very different from the kinds of stories that originate in the west, and they teach similar lessons, albeit with a unique Eastern spin.

The first story is Tikki Tikki Tembo, (Not to be confused with Rikki Tikki Tavi), which has a dual lesson; one being about favoritism by parents and the other about why parents no longer use the traditional, extremely long names for their children, which were used long ago. The tale uses the standard old "he-fell-in-the-well" gimmick to tell us about two kids, one of whom has such an incredibly long, unwieldy name...

Bedrock Studios and Arcady Bay Entertainment are developing a feature based on Katherine Paterson's fantasy novel "The Flint Heart." Arcady Bay principal David Paterson ( Bridge to Terabithia ) will adapt his mother's book as a live-action film that will be special effects driven, reports Variety . The story centers on a magical amulet that brings power and despair to those who touch it while taking place during a time stretching from the Stone Age to modern day England. The book is scheduled for a release from children's publisher Candlewick Press early next year.

The Flint Heart is coming to the big screen In a story from Variety, Bedrock Studios and Arcady Bay Entertainment are going to make a feature adaptation of The Flint Heart, based on Katherine Paterson's fantasy novel.

Arcady Bay head David Paterson (Bridge to Terabithia) is going to adapt his mother's book as a live-action film that will feature many special effects. She also wrote the book for the movie Bridge to Terabithia.

The story follows "a magical amulet that brings power and despair to those who touch it while taking place during a time stretching from the Stone Age to modern day England."

Katherine Paterson wrote the novel with her husband, John Paterson, Sr. The book is set to be released from children's publisher Candlewick Press in early 2011.

Cary Granat's Bedrock Studios has acquired screen rights to The Flint Heart, the upcoming novel by Katherine Paterson, for a live action fantasy film. Granat shepherded the Walden Media/Media screen adaptation of Paterson's The Bridge to Terabithia, a film that grossed near $140 million worldwide. Bedrock Studios is teaming with Arcady Bay, the company run by the author's son, David Paterson. He will write the screenplay. The Flint Heart spans from the Stone Age to contemporary England, and centers around a magical amulet that brings power and despair to those handling it. The book, based on a story the author hatched [...]...

There is such a thing as a tesseract. Just ask Mrs. Whatsit.

Jeff Stockwell has been hired to adapt author Madeleine L'Engle's classic time-travel head trip, "A Wrinkle in Time," for Cary Granat and his new Bedrock Studios.

A Wrinkle in Time   L'Engle's 1962 Newbery Medal-winning sci-fi novel revolves around teenager Meg Murry, her genius brother Charles Wallace and classmate Calvin O'Keefe as they launch an interplanetary mission to rescue the siblings' missing scientist father. They are counseled along the way by the mysterious trio of Mrs. Whatsit, Mrs. Who and Mrs. Which.

The BBC made a film version of the young-adult novel, and Dimension produced a telefilm for ABC in 2004. Disney carried remake rights from that deal and is developing the new feature iteration with Bedrock, which had negotiated rights to the property from the L'Engle estate. Catherine Hand also is producing, and L'Engle's granddaughter, Charlotte Voilkis, is exec producing.

• Killer Films, the production company that brought audiences the "angry inch" that shook the world, will soon enter a surprising and unknown territory: children's films. The company broke cinematic grounds in 1991 with the release of Todd Haynes' first film, Poison, which played a pivotal role in the launching of the New Queer Cinema movement. Killer Films has since been a vital force in the rapid growth and expansion of queer cinema with groundbreaking films such as Go Fish, Velvet Goldmine, Boys Don't Cry, Hedwig and the Angry Inch and their latest Haynes debut, I'm Not There. But you won't be seeing any of the usual sexual escapades in the company's latest projects (hopefully). Variety reports that Killer Films has signed on to produce three children's films in a deal with Arcady Bay Entertainment, who were responsible for Disney's Bridge to Terabithia. The company's co-founders, Christine Vachon and Pamela Koffler,

...

The boxoffice gods were smiling on Hollywood during the Presidents Day weekend as the combination of Sony Pictures' comic book adaptation Ghost Rider and Buena Vista Pictures' family flick Bridge to Terabithia helped lift the North American boxoffice to new heights for this time of year. The performance of the top two films, plus solid showings from Warner Bros. Pictures' romantic comedy Music and Lyrics, Lionsgate's Tyler Perry's Daddy's Little Girls and Universal Pictures' Breach, pushed the holiday weekend take to a estimated record $193 million, a 23% gain compared with last year at this time.

The Nicolas Cage starrer Ghost, from Columbia Pictures and Crystal Sky Pictures, bowed to an incredible $51.5 million for the four-day frame. The PG-13 Marvel Studios production from writer-director Mark Steven Johnson is the highest-grossing opener for the Presidents Day weekend, surpassing Johnson's previous directorial effort, Daredevil, which opened to $45 million in 2003.

Terabithia, a Walt Disney Pictures/Walden Media production, surpassed all industry expectations, opening to an estimated $29 million. Based on the 1978 Newbery Award-winning children's book from Katherine Paterson, the film lured families in a big way, generating a strong $9,239 per-theater average.

In fourth place, Warners' Hugh Grant/Drew Barrymore starrer Lyrics took in an estimated $16 million over the four days, the third opener to gross above expectations. The PG-13 film, which bowed Wednesday for Valentine's Day, has grossed an estimated $21.5 million in its first six days in release.

Lionsgate's Daddy's Little Girls, from multihyphenate Tyler Perry, also opened strong at $14.3 million for the four days, finishing in fifth place overall. The romantic comedy, which also opened on Valentine's Day, has grossed $20 million.

Universal didn't score as high with its CIA drama Breach, but with a stellar cast and strong reviews, the PG-13 film from director Billy Ray (Shattered Glass) drew in an audience of older moviegoers and took the sixth-place spot. The film grossed $12.3 million during the frame, generating a solid per-screen average of $8,790.

Paramount Pictures' release of DreamWorks' Norbit scored a solid estimated gross of $20.7 million over the four days for a third-place finish.

Sony Pictures' "Ghost Rider" burned up the boxoffice Friday. Director Mark Steven Johnson's adaptation of the motorcycle-riding Marvel Comics hero starring Nicolas Cage took off with estimated domestic gross boxoffice receipts of $15.25 million, according to the boxoffice tracking site, boxoffice mojo.com.

Another fantasy film, albeit one aimed at younger audiences, Buena Vista's "Bridge to Terabithia", bowed in second place. Director Gabor Csupo's adaptation of the book by Katherine Paterson, produced by Walt Disney Pictures and Walden Media, attracted an estimated $6.2 million.

"Norbit", Paramount Pictures' release of the DreamWorks comedy starring Eddie Murphy, shifted from first place last weekend to the third spot on Friday. It grabbed an estimated $4.3 million for the day.

Warner Bros. Pictures' romantic comedy, "Music and Lyrics", starring Hugh Grant and Drew Barrymore, held down fourth position, with an estimated $4.2 million.

From Lionsgate, "Tyler Perry's Daddy's Little Girls," which, like "Music", first bowed on Wednesday, registered a fifth place showing Friday with an estimated $2.975 million.

Universal Picture's "Breach", in which Chris Cooper plays spy Robert Hanssen, bowed in sixth place with an estimated $2.92 million.

Hal Lieberman has boarded to produce Bridge to Terabithia. Terabithia, based on the children's book by Katherine Paterson, is being adapted by Walt Disney Studios and Walden Media, and its producers include Lauren A. Levine and David Paterson. Lieberman was a producer on Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines as well as Around the World in 80 Days, when he first worked with Walden. His shingle, the Hal Lieberman Co., is set up at Sony and has Big Man on Campus and Grandpa in development.

HarperCollins Children's Books, one of the leading publishers of books for young readers with such titles as Charlotte's Web and the Lemony Snicket books, has pacted with the Gotham Group, founded by Ellen Goldsmith-Vein, for representation for film, television, video and allied rights. With the agreement, Gotham, which already reps Simon & Schuster's children and young adult libraries and such authors and illustrators as Tony Diterlizzi and Maurice Sendak, increases its dominance in the area of repping literary rights to kid lit that is looking to make the transition to the screen. HarperCollins publishes about 500 children's books annually, and though it doesn't retain the rights to all of them, its library numbers in the thousands. Some of the authors who will be represented include William Steig (Shrek), Katherine Paterson, Beverly Cleary, Margaret Wise Brown, Jack Prelutsky, Sarah Weeks and Aliki.

NEW YORK -- Following its recent feature productions Holes and Around the World in 80 Days, indie production shingle Walden Media is continuing to mine the children's lit world by fast-tracking a trio of new adaptations. The company said Wednesday that it has acquired rights to Katherine Paterson's Bridge to Terabithia as well as Australian author Wendy Orr's Nim's Island. Walden also has tapped Antz co-writer Todd Alcott to adapt another children's novel, The Giver, for the silver screen. Published in 1977 by HarperCollins, the Newbery Award-winning Bridge follows the story of an 11-year-old boy whose life is changed forever when he befriends the class outsider, a girl. Together they create the world of Terabithia, an imaginary kingdom filled with giants, trolls and other magical beings.