Just over 21 years after its original publishing, the rights Stephen King’s psychological horror novel The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon has been acquired by Village Roadshow Pictures for an adaptation penned by Christy Hall.
Published in 1999, the story centers on 12-year-old Trisha McFarland when she strays from the path while she and her recently divorced mother and brother take a hike along a branch of the Appalachian Trail. While lost for days, she finds herself wandering farther and farther astray, relying on her portable radio for comfort. A huge fan of Boston Red Sox relief pitcher Tom Gordon, Trisha listens to baseball games and fantasizes that her hero will save her, but also discovers that nature isn’t her only adversary as something dangerous is tracking her through the dark woods.
Jon Berg of Stampede Ventures is set to produce the project alongside It: Chapter Two and Doctor Sleep‘s Roy Lee of Vertigo, as well as Christine Romero, Night of the Living Dead‘s George A. Romero’s widow, and Origin Story’s Ryan Silbert, while Andrew Childs will serve as executive producer and Village Roadshow’s EVP of Content, Jillian Apfelbaum, overseeing development.
An adaptation of King’s psychological horror novel has been attempted for the past 15 years, beginning in 2005 with Romero being attached to write and direct, which stalled for years leading all the way up to his death in 2017. The project was revived last August with Romero’s production banner still attached along with Chris Romero through Sanibel Films.
Hall is best known for her work as executive producer and co-developer of Netflix’s adaptation of Charles Forsman’s comic book I Am Not Okay With This starring Sophia Lillis (It: Chapter Two, Gretel & Hansel), which scored rave reviews from critics and audiences alike.