A few years ago, some South Pacific-cruising Tiger shark decided there wasn’t enough big screen shark carnage and did something about it. He promptly bit off professional surfer Bethany Hamilton’s arm as she paddled out to sea on her surfboard in Hawaii*.
The chomping inspired a terribly titled book called Soul Surfer and thanks to America’s insatiable appetite for sports films about athletes insurmountable odds, books based on movies and young ladies in bikinis, may be inspiring a movie of the same corny name as well. The film will be based on Bethany’s ordeal and how, just two and a half months later, she hopped on a surfboard and entered the water all over again.
The Australia Times is reporting Sean McNamara, Tween director fantastico, has committed to direct Soul Surfer after he finishes up the seminal masterpiece Bratz: The Movie (see roundup story here) and that casting is currently in session. We shall see, but honestly, I hope they get rid of all the touchy-feely stuff and focus their attention on the morning Arm met a shark named Tigre. But, considering the book received a lot of hullaballoo from Christian booksellers, I doubt it.
*Paradise my ass.