Chris Columbus has a reputation for throwing his producing weight behind dramas that delve into history, including The Help and The Butler. He is now turning his attention to a true-life Holocaust refugee story, starting development on **Exodus 47.
Mark Friedman is adapting the script from John Grauel’s autobiography. Grauel was a Baptist minister who was aboard the steam ship Exodus 47 on a mission to help deliver Holocaust survivors to freedom shortly after World War II. The ship loaded 4,5000 refugees at the French port of Sète but was turned back near Palestine.
The refugees ended up in internment camps in Cyprus, but their story ended up playing a major role in the creation of Israel in 1948. “I am really excited about the chance to bring** Exodus 47** to the screen,” Columbus tells Variety. “I find it astounding that this particular and very real version of the Exodus story has never been turned into a movie.”
Columbus hasn’t said yet whether he’ll direct this one, and he has been known to hand these projects off to others. He’s currently busy in production on video game sci-fi comedy Pixels, which stars Adam Sandler, Josh Gad and Kevin James and will be on our screens on May 27 next year.