DeVito helming 'True Confessions'

Danny DeVito will direct an adaptation of the young adult novel The True Confessions Of Charlotte Doyle.

DeVito, who wrote the screenplay, has cast Pierce Brosnan, Morgan Freeman and Saoirse Ronan in the film, which begins production in September.

The original novel by Edward Irving Wortis (written under his pen name Avi) focuses on a young girl who boards a ship called the Seahawk in 1832 to make the journey from the UK to Rhode Island in the US. Brosnan will play the ship's captain while Freeman plays the onboard cook.

Discussing the tone of the film with Variety, DeVito said: "I want edge, in terms of keeping you on the edge of your PG seat. You always want to push to the limit, but I want people to know I’ll take care of the audience like I would my own children."

DeVito's previous directing credits include The War Of The Roses, Matilda and Death To Smoochy.

True Confessions will be his first feature since 2003's Ben Stiller/Drew Barrymore comedy Our House.