James Franco in talks for starring role in "The Game"

LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - James Franco is in early talks for a starring role in "The Game," the MGM movie based on Neil Strauss' New York Times bestseller about picking up women, TheWrap has confirmed.

Strauss documented his experiences in "The Game: Penetrating the Secret Society of Pickup Artists," which was released by Regan Books in 2005. Franco's role would be as Mystery, who taught Strauss how to become a pick-up artist.

"The Game" is directed by Brian Koppelman and David Levien, both of whom worked on the screenplay. Writers D.B. Weiss (HBO's "Game of Thrones"), and Lee Eisenberg and Gene Stupnitsky -- the Emmy-nominated writer-producers of NBC's "The Office" -- also worked on the project.

Gary Barber, Roger Birnbaum, Andrew Miano, Chris Weitz and Paul Weitz are producing "The Game."