Director Mike Newell has had a pretty varied career, with films that include Donnie Brasco, Mona Lisa Smile, and the underappreciated Amazing Grace and Chuck. More recently, Newell got the attention of the young adult lit crowd when he took on the fourth Harry Potter movie, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, the first in the series to garner a PG-13 rating.
Working on a popular youth story must have really appealed to Newell, because he’s signed on for another one. No, Newell isn’t returning to the world of Harry Potter. Instead he’s taking on the classic story, The Box of Delights by John Masefield, reports Variety.
The 1930s story tells the tale of a boy who receives a magical box that allows him to travel in time. The story has already been adapted into a BBC television series, as well as a radio drama that Newell has fond memories of. "I first heard 'Box of Delights' as a radio play on the BBC when I was a boy. I was immediately seduced by the tingling, opening harp music and the fantastical, mysterious, magic story that followed."
The movie is being set up at the British shingle, Brilliant Films. Presumably Newell will move on to The Box of Delights after he finishes production on his current picture, the adaptation of The Prince of Persia.
