Samuel L. Jackson Heads to Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children

Amidst all the Oscar hoopla — the Academy members have to cast their votes by February 17th for the big event of February 22nd— film scripts are still being written, films are still being greenlit and movies are actually getting made. Sometimes that process takes a long, long, long  time.

I've been following Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children for what seems like forever, ever since we learned the quirky tale was movie-bound and that Tim Burton was likely the man to direct it. That was November, 2011. And it still hasn't gone into production! BUT according to Deadline that's about to change, Burton is putting the finishing touches on casting, with the goal of hitting theaters in March of next year. Eva Green —she was the mom who went missing in White Bird in a Blizzard, and co-starred in Tim Burton's Dark Shadows re-do — is all set to play Miss Peregrine herself, with Asa Butterfield (Hugo, Ender's Game, Ten Thousand Saints) cast as Jacob.

The newest cast member is Samuel L. Jackson who should add some crackle to the fire; he's in final talks to play Mr. Barron, Jacob's former school bus driver. Jackson who can currently be seen in The Kingsman is now shooting Quentin Tarentino's Hateful Eight, and would be available as soon as that wraps which means production on Miss Peregrine really and truly could start later this spring. And has to if it's going to meet its March 2016 release date. The script based on Ransom Riggs popular book was written by Jane Goldman (Kick-Ass, The Woman in Black) who proved with the latter she knows how to do creepy. And Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children is definitely that. The author used a series of 'found photographs', eerie black and white pictures which will no doubt inspire Burton to go to some dark places. I wonder if he'll shoot in black and white?  Kind of hoping so, outside of Alexander Payne's Nebraska, we don't see a lot of it these days, and sometimes it's just the ticket. If you've ever seen The Haunting, the 1963 version starring Claire Bloom and Julie Harris, you know what I mean. Scariest movie ever.

This is the home in Rigg's book — check out the book trailer below for a look at more of the freaky leaky intriguing images.


What's the story:

"16-year-old Jacob follows clues that take him to a mysterious island, where he discovers the crumbling ruins of Miss Peregrine's School for Peculiar Children. As Jacob explores the abandoned bedrooms and hallways, he discovers that its former occupants were far more than peculiar; they possessed incredible powers. And they may still be alive."