Escape Artists has acquired the rights to a first-person essay published in January in the New York Times as a producing and potential starring vehicle for Denzel Washington, says The Hollywood Reporter. Jonathan Burnham Schwartz will write the script.
The project, Journal for Jordan, is based on Dana Canedy’s essay, which describes a 200-page journal penned by her fiance, 1st Sgt. Charles Monroe King, for their son. The 48-year-old soldier was killed in Baghdad in October, one month shy of finishing his tour of duty. He had left for the Middle East before his son was born. The journal aimed to impart words of wisdom to the son on how to live a proper life and to prepare him for a life without his father.
Crown will release a book based on the journal.
The project is expected to land at Columbia Pictures, where Escape Artists has a first-look deal.
Escape Artists’ Todd Black, Jason Blumenthal and Steve Tisch are producing alongside Washington.
