Warner Bros. Pictures is negotiating to buy the movie rights for Allen Levi’s hit novel Theo of Golden, with actor Tom Hanks in talks to star as the main character.
Contracts for the deal are being finalized. Hanks will also serve as a producer alongside Gil Netter and Gary Goetzman. Levi, who became a publishing success story as he approached 70 years old, will join the project as an executive producer. Executives Jesse Ehrman and Sheila Walcott are directing the project for Warner Bros. after literary executive Ian Dalrymple brought the novel to the studio’s attention.
The novel takes place in the fictional town of Golden. The plot follows a man named Theo who arrives in town and buys pencil drawings of local residents from a coffee shop. As Theo returns each portrait to its subject, the visits reveal personal stories and local relationships while helping Theo face a tragic event in his own past.
Theo of Golden started without big promotional campaigns or major fanfare. Levi, a former lawyer who switched to making music on an island in Georgia, self-published the book in 2023.
The book grew a fan base through readers sharing it by word of mouth, supported by promotional efforts from Levi’s niece, Aron Ritchie. Articles in The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, and The New York Times highlighted Levi’s sudden success. The novel’s popularity grew faster after media figure Oprah Winfrey featured Levi and his book on her podcast.
Simon & Schuster published the book for a wider audience last October. Since then, the novel has sold more than 3.5 million copies in the United States and has been translated into 43 languages, reaching the No. 1 bestseller spot in countries including Italy, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom.
Producer Gil Netter has a long history of adapting books for the big screen, including films like Marley & Me, The Blind Side, Life of Pi, Just Mercy, The Shack, and Water for Elephants.
Hanks and Goetzman recently finished work on Greyhound 2, which Hanks wrote and starred in under director Aaron Schneider. The production duo is also preparing for The Comebacker, a film directed by Marielle Heller and acquired by Sony. In that upcoming movie, Hanks plays a New York Mets pitching coach alongside actor Callum Turner. The Comebacker is scheduled to begin filming in early fall.
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