Fishburne to direct The Alchemist

I read Paolo Coelho's The Alchemist way back when it was firstt published. I enjoyed the allegory, and thought that it was a much better book than many of the other fictional spiritual tales that came out in the 1990's (think the Celestine Prophecy). At least Coelho's a decent writer. The film version sounds like it will stray from the spiritual message of the book.

From The Guardian:

The Alchemist, the bestseller by Paolo Coelho, is heading for the big screen, with Laurence Fishburne at the helm.

The Matrix actor will both adapt the novel and direct the film, after he bought the rights to The Alchemist from Hollywood studio Warner Brothers. The book is perhaps the most famous of Coelho's novels, a fable describing how a young shepherd boy travels the world in pursuit of his dreams. Since it was first published in 1998, The Alchemist has sold more than 40m copies in 150 countries and has been translated into 56 languages.

Fishburne is teaming with one of the producers of the Lord of the Rings trilogy, Barry Osborne, to bring The Alchemist to the big screen. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the filmmakers want to turn the book into "a Harry Potter meets Indiana Jones" sweeping adventure.

The adaptation of The Alchemist has had a tortuous history. Warner Brother first bought the rights to the novel in 2003 as a vehicle for Fishburne, but the project never took off the ground and languished for years on the studio's shelves.

Tags: The Alchemist, Paolo Coelho, Laurence Fishburne, books, film