“Atlas Shrugged,” the 1957 Ayn Rand novel about a dystopian future, will move into independent production on June 11, according to Deadline New York.
The book was optioned in 1992 by John Aglialoro, who paid one million dollars for complete rights to a film version. Since then, a number of false starts have plagued the project, including former plans to develop the story as a television miniseries.
Aglialoro’s current plan is to turn the massive novel into four features, directed by first timer Stephen Polk with a script by Brian O’Tool and Aglialoro himself.
No stars are currently attached, though Deadline reports that Charlize Theron and Maggie Gyllenhaal are the top choices to play the lead, Dagny Taggart. Failure to lock celebrity talent, though, is no longer an obstacle in Aglialoro’s view and he plans to have the project move forward with or without big name stars.
