FROM EPIC TO EPIX? 'ATLAS SHRUGGED' EYED AS MINI FOR FLEDGLING NETWORK (BIZ, HWT)

By Wiretap Staff

After decades of attempts to get Ayn Rand's magnum opus "Atlas Shrugged" to the screen, it appears progress is finally being made, says the Risky Buisness blog. Charlize Theron, who has previously expressed interest in playing protagonist Dagny Taggart, has been meeting during the past several months with Lionsgate and producers Howard and Karen Baldwin. Although her ultimate involvement remains sketchy, a plan seems to be coming together to turn the 1,000 page book into a miniseries for Epix, the pay-cable network Lionsgate is forming with MGM and Viacom/Paramount.

Such a move would surely appease fans of the book who have long believed that a Hollywood-ified film - even at the running time du jour of 2.5 hours - would not do justice to the story's intricacies and rich cast of characters. Rand herself favored television over film especially following her notorious clashes with King Vidor on his bigscreen adaptation of her "The Fountainhead."

As BIZ reports, an "Atlas" miniseries would be one of Epix' programming linchpins. While insiders are not ruling out the possibility of releasing a condensed version to theaters, the main thrust would be the network.

Although Theron is said to have been driving the development process, WME and longtime manager J.J. Harris told the blog on Monday that Theron "is not moving forward with the project."

An "Atlas" adaptation has been tried by countless producers, dating back to an attempted effort with writer-producer Albert Ruddy in 1972. Given the story's themes of individualism - which resonate in today's era of Obama, government bailouts and stimulus packages and which have led to a surge in sales of the book - producers are keen to shoot next year. Meanwhile, an option with the Rand estate expires if principal photography does not begin in 2010.

A high net-worth individual is said to find the themes resonant is said to be close to investing in the project. In April, it was reported that Ryan Kavanaugh was circling.

The book, for which Rand wrote the manuscript by hand and which was published in 1957 in the US, has been known to polarize readers. It tells the story of Dagny Taggart, a railroad executive trying to keep her corporation competitive in the face of what she perceives as a lack of innovation and individual responsibility.

A mysterious character, John Galt, who is alluded to in the book's first line and recurring mantra, "Who is John Galt?," only makes a physical appearance much later and goes on to deliver a 50 page speech in which he lays out the Rand principles of Objectivism.

Angelina Jolie had been loosely attached to the material but has a number of projects that could go first. Other names bandied about have included Julia Roberts and Anne Hathaway.