Abigail in a new movie next year

Academy Award nominee Abigail Breslin (Little Miss Sunshine) will star as Kit Kittredge in the first theatrical adaptation from the American Girl series, as an HBO Films production to be released by Picturehouse, it was announced today by Bob Berney, president of Picturehouse and Colin Callender, president, HBO Films.

Produced by HBO Films, Elaine Goldsmith-Thomas and Marisa Yeres, from Goldsmith-Thomas Productions, in association with Julia Roberts and Lisa Gillan from Red Om Films, and Ellen L. Brothers of American Girl, Inc., the film is written by Ann Peacock (A Lesson Before Dying, The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe) and tells the story of the clever and resourceful Kit Kittredge, a nine-year-old girl growing up in 1934 during America’s Great Depression. Shooting will begin this summer.

“For such a young person Abigail Breslin has proven herself to be a tremendous talent with the ability to create fully realized characters,” said Berney. “Abigail is the perfect young actress to play Kit. She will bring her humor, warmth and intelligence to this role and truly make Kit come to life. We look forward to moving into production and look forward to a successful collaboration with all of our partners in this project.”

“We are very excited about bringing the American Girl stories to a theatrical audience and who better to create the role of Kit than the Oscar nominated Abigail Breslin who thrilled us all with her enchanting performance in Little Miss Sunshine,” said Callender. “Abigail was our very first choice for this role and her enthusiasm and passion for this project is simply infectious.”

Introduced in 2000 as the seventh American Girl historical character, Kit Kittredge will be the first one to have her story adapted for a theatrical film. Working in partnership with American Girl for the last five years, Goldsmith-Thomas Productions and Red Om Films have received nominations and awards for their telefilms Samantha: An American Girl Holiday, Felicity: An American Girl Adventure, and Molly: An American Girl on the Home Front.

HBO and American Girl, one of the nation’s top direct marketers, children’s publishers and experiential retailers, have an overall relationship to develop a variety of multi-platform ventures including theatrical films, series, specials and documentaries. This film will be the first picture greenlit though this deal.