Move over, Danny Ocean. Make way for Katarina Bishop, the newest cat burglar on the block and heroine of Ally Carter's YA series "Heist Society." We've been not-so-patiently waiting for scoop about this adaptation ever since it was announced way back in February 2010 that Warner Bros. had purchased the film rights. The wait was well worth it because The Hollywood Reporter broke big news about the film last night: Drew Barrymore will produce and possibly direct!
The actress will produce through her Flower Films company in collaboration with screenwriter Shauna Cross (whom she also worked with on "Whip It"). We couldn't be more enthused about Drew's involvement considering how much we loved her girl-power roller derby drama, but we wanted to check in with author Ally to get her take on the amazing announcement. Check out our interview after the jump for all the scoop!
Hollywood Crush: Ally! I nearly jumped out of my chair when the news about Drew crossed my Twitter feed yesterday. It's so exciting! However, I've seen a few conflicting reports; some say Drew will both produce and direct, others say she hasn't signed on to direct yet. What can you tell us?
Ally Carter: I honestly don't know. I know that that Di Novi Pictures and Warner Bros., they've been working on the script for a very long time with Shauna Cross. I know Drew has seen the script, I believe, and is very interested in the project. That is the last I've heard. And then the news came across yesterday. I honestly don't have any inside information beyond what it says in The Hollywood Reporter. So I don't know if she is directing and producing or just producing.
So at the very least, we know she's producing?
Well, that's what The Hollywood Reporter says. [Laughs] I haven't talked to the producers. I haven't talked to Drew. I haven't talked to anybody at Warner Bros., so I don't know if that was a press release that was issued by anybody or somebody just kind of got some gossip. As far as I know, Drew is involved in the project. To what extent, I couldn't tell you.
What was your reaction when you heard she would be involved?
I'm so thrilled to see forward progress. So many things get optioned and you never even get a script, much less somebody of Drew's caliber attached to the project at a producer level or a director level. So I was just thrilled and kind of flabbergasted that things continue to be moving forward even if maybe slowly. I think The Hollywood Reporter article said that she has another directorial project lined up first. But that's fine. And I know that's kind of how the business works.
How do you think Drew's experience will influence her producing and/or directing of this movie?
When I think about "Heist Society," it's about a girl who grew up in a sort of male-dominated family business and is trying to make a name for herself. When you think about the Barrymore family and you think about Drew, I think that she's somebody that's going to bring a very unique sensibility and understanding of that character. So I think that is very exciting.
Have you seen "Whip It," Drew's other collaboration with Shauna?
I did see "Whip It." That's when we were doing the original deal for "Heist Society" back in February of 2010. I got "Whip It" because I wanted to see it because Shauna had written it. I thought it was a great little movie.
We think of Drew Barrymore being kind of an old-timer in the industry because she's been doing this for so long, but in many ways, she's just at the beginning of her career. And it's very exciting to see what happens next.
Have you talked with Shauna recently about the script progress?
No, I haven't actually spoken with the team in quite awhile. I was in L.A. last June or July for tour and was able to meet with Di Novi and actually go to lunch with Shauna, which was great. For the most part, authors are not that involved in the movie-making process and probably for good reason. I've been pretty busy working on "Uncommon Criminals" [the second "Heist Society" novel] and the new "Gallagher Girls" book, so I consider my part of the movie-making process to continue making source material and trying to keep my head down and cranking out as many books as I can.
The Hollywood Reporter also mentioned that the characters will be aged up.
Back when we did the original option back in February of 2010, we were very fortunate to have a number of studios interested in it, and they all had a different take on the material. Warner Bros. and Shauna and Di Novi were very upfront and honest about their intentions to age the characters up from the very beginning. So that was one of the factors that I put into the deliberation process, and I honestly never thought of "Heist Society" being a typical high school movie. I think Kat is a very old soul, and in many many ways there are not many differences between Kat at the age of 15 and Kat at the age of 25. So I think that there's a very good possibility that a movie with the characters aged up could be a tremendous movie. That's why that was never a source of big concern for me. I was far more interested in having people who were going to keep the characters smart than keep them young.
Do you have any fantasy castings for Kat?
Oh, no. I really don't. I'm just so thrilled to see any forward progress, like I said. There are so many great, great actresses that are working in Hollywood right now. I don't know if I should drop any names. I don't want anyone to think I'm trying to cast this thing. [Laughs] If she were young and 25 again and still with us, I think Audrey Hepburn would have been perfect.
She was very beautiful but also could blend in if necessary.
Exactly. And feisty and smart and strong. I think more than anything, I want an actress with moxie. So more than anything, that is my priority. Not that I get to have a voice in the process.
So we just need to find the modern-day Audrey Hepburn. No big deal.
The modern-day Audrey would suit me well. [Laughs]
It's just a thrill to be mentioned in the same breath as Drew Barrymore. I know that we are still at the very early early stages. It's still anything but a done deal. Directors get attached to projects everyday and then the projects don't actually come to fruition. So it's a great sign. I'm going to cross my fingers and hope it's the first of many good signs.
We'll keep our fingers crossed too!
Are you excited that Drew will be involved in bringing "Heist Society" to the big screen? Tell us in the comments and on Twitter!
** Hollywood Crush Twitter