"Beer in Hell" flowing to big screen

By Gregg Goldstein

NEW YORK (Hollywood Reporter) - Internet star Tucker Max will adapt his bawdy bestseller "I Hope They Serve Beer in Hell" into a big-screen comedy.

"Hell," now No. 12 on the New York Times Best-seller List after a three-year run, chronicles Max's true, alcohol-fueled adventures. The film will follow his trip to a friend's bachelor party, where he ensnares the groom in a lie that threatens the wedding, and then abandons him to pursue further carnal knowledge. After being banned from the nuptials, Max attempts to get back into his friend's good graces.

Bob Gosse ("Niagara Niagara") will direct the privately financed feature, which begins shooting on June 2 in Louisiana..

Max rose to fame after launching TuckerMax.com in 2002, garnering millions of unique site visitors and a $300,000 advance for his Penguin Books memoir.

But Max's road to the screen has been a long one. In 2003, he sold a TV pilot based on his site and book to 20th Century Fox and then NBC, but rights quickly reverted to him after a regime change. Three years later he sold the show to Sony, and Comedy Central bought the pilot, but the deal was canceled after a dispute with Sony about feature film rights.

Reuters/Hollywood Reporter