Cruise tackles 'Monster Of Florence'

Tom Cruise has picked up the rights to serial killer book The Monster Of Florence.

Cruise will produce the film through his United Artists shingle and may star, reports Variety.

Author Douglas Preston (The Relic) and Italian crime journalist Mario Spezi told local newspaper Corriere della Sera that they have made a deal with the actor.

The bestseller tells the story of 14 murders believed to have been committed between in and around Florence between 1968 and 1985.

"The film will have Florence and the Chianti as protagonists, two of the locations most beloved by Americans," said Spezi.

Valkyrie writer Chris McQuarrie will pen the script.