Paramount buys rights to children's book

Paramount Pictures acquires the rights to Charlie Fletcher's children's novel Stoneheart.

The book sees London statutes of famous historical characters come to live and go about reliving their respective histories.

Producers Scott Rudin and Lorenzo di Bonaventura will oversee the project, which they see as having franchise potential.

Di Bonaventura told The Hollywood Reporter: "It's a great children's book, which Scott and I both read. We thought, 'This is the way to do The Wizard of Oz in England.' We're setting our goals high."

Fletcher's novel, the first in a planned trilogy, is due for publication in September.