The 5th Wave by Rick Yancey was optioned earlier this year by Tobey Macguire’s Material Pictures and GK Film. The project landed at Sony, who has now hired screenwriter Susannah Grant to adapt the novel.
Grant is best known for her Oscar nominated script for Erin Brockovich. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Grant is one of Sony’s go-to script writers for high profile projects. The 5th Wave debuted in May, landing at number two on the New York Times Bestsellers list.
The story follows a 16-year-old heroine who survives an alien invasion only to search for her brother, who might have been abducted by human-looking extraterrestrials. The girl is helped by a boy who also might be an alien in disguise. The 5th Wave received much buzz and critical acclaim upon its release.
Rumor had it that Penguin spent over $750,000 on promoting the book. The promotion included trailers before high profile films like Man of Steel, as well as survival kits to book bloggers.
The 5th Wave is the first book in a set trilogy. Yancey’s other work includes The Monstrumologist series, which fans had to fight for to be completed because the publishing house was not willing to continue the series.