Stephen King’s 1980 novel Firestarter has remained one of his most celebrated stories over the last four decades, with a 1984 film adaptation that’s been just as popular with fans through the years. Now audiences can prepare themselves for a new telling of the classic story, as Universal, Blumhouse, and Weed Road are collaborating on a new version of Firestarter. And it’s just been announced that actor Zac Efron is in talks to star in this upcoming Firestarter adaptation.
As revealed in a new announcement from Blumhouse, actor Zac Efron will star in a new Firestarter adaptation as Andy McGee, the father of Charlie McGee. The actor will soon be turning 33, so he’s the perfect age to play a young father as depicted in the original novel and its first film adaptation.
Hopefully we’ll have more casting announcements regarding the upcoming project in the near future – particularly who might fill the role as Charlie McGee, our titular Firestarter. After all, she’ll be the center of the film. In the meantime, Zac Efron is certainly an exciting name for such a project, and it’ll be interesting to see what take he gives for such a memorable piece of Stephen King’s bibliography. I’m also looking forward to see who will take on the role of John Rainbird, someone I consider one of Stephen King’s most underrated villains.
The new adaptation of Stephen King’s novel Firestarter will be directed by Keith Thomas from a script written by Scott Teems. The synopsis of the film reads:
“A young girl develops pyrokinetic abilities and is abducted by a secret government agency that wants to harness her powerful gift as a weapon.”
The upcoming film will also be executive produced by Teems alongside Martha De Laurentiis, who was an associate producer on the 1984 film adaptation. Jason Blum and Akiva Goldsman will produce the film.