"Strange" film deal for Cosmo editor

By Gregg Goldstein

NEW YORK (Hollywood Reporter) - The production company behind "A Prairie Home Companion" is bringing Cosmopolitan magazine deputy editor John Searles' offbeat mystery novel "Strange but True" to the big screen.

The story begins when a teenager's girlfriend arrives at his family's home five years after his death insisting that she is pregnant with his child.

GreeneStreet Films bought Searles' screenplay and the film rights to his 2004 book, and plans to finance the project. It is partnered on the project with producer Ross Katz ("Lost in Translation"). Greenestreet and Katz previously partnered on Todd Field's 2001 drama "In the Bedroom."

Searles' writing credits include the debut coming-of-age novel "Boy Still Missing." He recently signed a two-book contract with HarperCollins and is now at work on his third novel.

Reuters/Hollywood Reporter