Apparently, not all YA fiction these days centers on monsters of the mythical variety, and now it’s time to bring those particular blood-suckers to the big screen. Deadline Echo Park reports that filmmaker Kat Coiro will direct the film adaptation of Paige Harbison‘s novel, “Here Lies Bridget.” The story focuses on what happens “after narcissistic mean girl Bridget Duke crashes her car and ends up in limbo, [where] she must confront the people she has bullied, degraded and belittled, all of whom must decide if she goes to heaven or hell.”
Coiro recently wrote, directed, and produced L!fe Happens, a mildly satisfying slice-of-life female-centric dramedy that stars Kate Bosworth, Rachel Bilson, and Krysten Ritter. The film revolves around three best friends and roommates who find their entirely life thrown into disarray when one of them (Ritter) gets pregnant from a one night stand and decides to raise the baby on her own (with the help of her equally-as-unprepared roommates). The film premiered at this year’s Los Angeles Film Festival and is set to open in theaters on March 30, 2012. While I was not a tremendous fan of L!fe Happens (and, please, someone ditch that exclamation mark), the film did exhibit Coiro’s charm and ability to craft female characters that feel both likeable and real. Much of the film rang true, so it will be interesting to see Coiro apply her talents to a film that’s significantly less down-to-Earth.
Coiro herself explained, “Here Lies Bridget is a profound coming of age story wrapped in the glossy packaging of a teen comedy–think an edgy It’s A Wonderful Life meets Mean Girls. The film is deceptively deep, genre-bending, surprising and entertaining.” The filmmakers has not penned the script for this one, as the film comes with an adaptation from Leah Rachel, a an up-and-coming comedy writer who recently sold two television pilots.
Coiro is in the midst of finishing her second feature, While We Were Here, which also stars Bosworth. Coiro is again pulling triple-duty on the film, with credits as director, writer, and producer.
Casting for Here Lies Bridget is currently underway. Any ideas on who should play Bridget? Having not read the book, the name Dianna Agron still came to mind.