George Clooney has joined the crew working on the movie adaption of John Grisham's baseball-themed novel Calico Joe.
Actor Grant Heslov has also joined the project and will be co-producing with the Oscar winner under their production company, Smoke House Pictures.
The film is being co-produced by musician Bob Dylan’s Grey Water Park Productions.
“John has written a beautiful story and the chance to collaborate with Bob to bring it to the screen is just fantastic,” said Clooney and Heslov in a joint statement.
“George and Grant see in this book what I see in it – a powerful story that will resonate with young and old alike. People in all walks of life will be able relate to it,” said Dylan.
Clooney is thought to be directing the project, but has not confirmed the decision. In the past, Clooney has directed a number of projects, including The Monuments Men, The Ides of March and Leatherheads.
Grisham's Calico Joe was released in April 2012. With both fictional players playing for actual teams such as the New York Mets and the Chicago Cubs, along with real people as characters, the novel blends fact and fiction.
The script is being developed and financed by Ara Keshishian and Petr Jakl's ZQ Entertainment.
“In this climate, with the ever-evolving distribution landscape and different ways to reach audiences, we feel this is the perfect time to focus on development with the best storytellers. The calibre of talent involved, and quality of John Grisham’s amazing book is the exact type of content we are looking to develop and produce. Smokehouse’s track record speaks for itself and we look forward to working with them and the legendary Bob Dylan to bring this story to life,” Keshishian and Jakl said in a joint statement.
