Sorkin brought in to rescue 'Moneyball'

Aaron Sorkin has been hired to write a new script for Brad Pitt's axed baseball drama Moneyball.

Columbia Pictures pulled the plug on the movie last month after writer/director Steven Soderbergh's script failed to enthuse the studio. Soderbergh has since left the project and the studio has asked West Wing writer Sorkin to submit a new draft as soon as possible, says The Hollywood Reporter.

Moneyball, based on Michael Lewis's non-fiction book, is about Billy Beane, the Oakland Athletics general manager who built a successful baseball team on a shoestring budget using an advanced computer system.

Sorkin was hired to revive the Moneyball project after his script The Social Network, about the formation of Facebook, impressed Columbia.