"Milk" scribe to write, direct "3 Story" adaptation

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - Warner Bros. has picked up movie rights to "3 Story: The Secret History of the Giant Man," a Dark Horse Comics graphic novel by Matt Kindt, and Dustin Lance Black, the Oscar-winning writer of "Milk," has been tapped to write and direct the adaptation.

The graphic novel is a modern fable exploring the life of a giant man, Craig Pressgang, whose strange medical condition causes continuous growth. The tale is told from the point of view of three women -- his mother, wife and daughter -- and follows Craig's journey from birth to his eventual three-story height. It also serves as an exploration of loneliness and love's changing nature.

The acquisition by Warners is an eyebrow-raising move because the material is on the arty side and downbeat, too. But the studio responded to Black's take, which would focus on the father-daughter relationship and soften the melancholic ending.

"3 Story" represents a move into the studio world for Black, who won an Oscar for original screenwriting for "Milk," the Gus Van Sant-directed biopic of slain politician and gay-rights activist Harvey Milk.

Black made his directorial debut with the indie drama "What's Wrong With Virginia," which stars Emma Roberts and Jennifer Connelly. He also wrote the screenplay for the picture, which does not have a release date.

Black also wrote the screenplay for Clint Eastwood's latest project, "Hoover," about the legendary head of the FBI, and recently wrote and produced episodes of HBO's "Big Love."