John Cameron Mitchell's HOW TO TALK TO GIRLS AT PARTIES Picked Up by A24; CURIOUS INCIDENT's Alex Sharp Joins Cast

Deadline reports that A24 has acquired U.S. rights to John Cameron Mitchell's HOW TO TALK TO GIRLS AT PARTIES. Production will get underway this November on the project, based on an award-winning short story by Neil Gaiman. Elle Fanning, Nicole Kidman, and Alex Sharp, who recently won the Tony award winner for Broadway's CURIOUS INCIDENT OF THE DOG IN THE NIGHT-TIME will star. Howard Gertler and Academy Award winners Iain Canning and Emile Sherman (Macbeth) will produce with Gaiman serving as executive producer.

The story follows "a shy teenage punk rocker Enn in 1970s suburban London, and his two closest friends. One night they all sneak into a party where they meet a group of intensely attractive, otherworldly girls; at first they think they're from a cult, but eventually come to realize the girls are literally from another world-outer space. The leaders of this alien COLONY have a nefarious plan in mind, but that doesn't stop Enn from falling madly in love with Zan, one of the colony's key members. Their burgeoning romance sets in motion a series of increasingly sensational events that will lead to the ultimate showdown of punks versus aliens, and test the bonds of friendship, family, and true love."

Commented A24 in a statement, "We are absolutely delighted to be getting on board How to Talk to Girls at Parties. The script is both great fun and an affectionate celebration of the outsider spirit, and we know John Cameron Mitchell is the perfect person to bring this wild and singular universe to life. We are thrilled to be working with him along with the movie's top-tier producing team."

Mitchell co-wrote the screenplay with Philippa Goslett. He recently returned to the role he co-created with composer and lyricist Stephen Trask in the Tony Award winning musical HEDWIG AND THE ANGRY INCH. His New York stage appearances included Broadway's Big River, The Secret Garden, Six Degrees of Separation, and Larry Kramer's The Destiny of Me for which he won an Obie Award. He starred in and wrote the book for the original 1998 Off-Broadway production of Hedwig and the Angry Inch for which he won an Obie Award along with co-creator composer Stephen Trask. In 2001 John directed, wrote, and starred in the film adaptation which won him Best Director at Sundance and a Golden Globe nomination for Best Actor. He was executive producer of Jonathan Caouette's documentary Tarnation (2004) and his sexually frank improv-based film Shortbus was released in 2006. He directed Rabbit Hole(2011) adapted from the Pulitzer Prize-winning play and starring Nicole Kidman in an Oscar-nominated performance.

He's also appearing as a recurring character on the HBO series "Girls" and preparing to direct a film adaptation of Neil Gaiman's punk era story How to Talk to Girls at Parties.

Photo Credit: Walter McBride