It’s a Two-Whitaker Week! And by that, we mean that just one day after news that Forest Whitaker was in talks to snatch a role in **Taken 3 alongside Liam Neeson, there’s word that he’s also hammering out a deal to direct an adaptation of William Paul Young’s bestseller **The Shack.
With a script by The Forbidden Kingdom’s John Fusco, it is not, in fact, a sweeping drama set in the high-stakes world of a Radio Shack sales floor. Instead, the film will follow a character named Mackenzie Allen Phillips who, while trying to recover from a huge personal tragedy, receives a mysterious note that invites him to the titular structure.
The most intriguing part of the note is that it’s signed Papa, his wife’s nickname for God. Phillips decides to play along, and discovers that the Shack has more of a Biblical overtone than even the note suggested.
Williams’ book hit shelves in 2007 and has been in development since last year when Summit Entertainment bought the rights. This wouldn’t be Whitaker’s first time behind the camera, nor his first attempt at tackling a novel adaptation: among the other movies he’s made is Waiting To Exhale, taken from Terry McMillan’s novel.