Johnny Depp has snapped up, via his production company Infinitum Nihil, the rights to Nick Tosches’ novel, In The Hand Of Dante, with a view to definitely producing and perhaps starring.
The plot of Tosches’ book makes it sound like this could be a relatively low-key, arthouse type project for Depp, perhaps as an antidote to the blockbusting likes of the Pirates Of The Caribbean trilogy, the mooted The Lone Ranger and whatever Tim Burton happens to be doing at the moment (which is Alice In Wonderland, of course, with Depp as the Mad Hatter).
A curious blend of fact and fiction, **In The Hand Of Dante **weaves two stories: in the 14th century, Dante Aligheri writes the legendary The Divine Comedy. In the 21st century, the manuscript, long thought lost, turns up and attracts the nefarious interest of the Mob. Enter Tosches himself, brought in to authenticate the manuscript… but he has his own plans for it.
A mixture of thriller, lecture and self-reflexive satire, **In The Hand Of Dante **sounds like it could certainly be right up Depp’s alley. If he commits to starring, he would play Tosches.
Christi Dembrowski, Depp’s partner at the wonderfully-named Infinitum Nihil, will produce.