‘Avengers: Doomsday’ Star Set to Bring one of BookTok’s Biggest Hits to Life

After the Marvel Cinematic Universe and the Dune franchise, Florence Pugh is heading to the center of a long-awaited adaptation of one of BookTok’s biggest juggernauts.

On Monday, reports revealed that Pugh is set to star in and produce a film adaptation of The Midnight Library. Based on Matt Haig’s 2020 bestselling novel of the same name, the project will be directed by Garth Davis, who has previously helmed 2016’s Lion and 2018’s Mary Magdalene, and who is directing Pugh in episodes of Netflix’s upcoming adaptation of John Steinbeck’s East of Eden.

“I couldn’t be more excited to reunite with Florence Pugh on The Midnight Library,” Davis said in a statement. “Her warmth and talent are magical, and together I know we’ll do something special working with Matt’s iconic novel. This is a story that moves us both — a celebration of life in all its possibility and complexity. With Graham Broadbent, Blueprint Pictures and Studiocanal behind us, I can’t wait to illuminate this adventure.”

A film adaptation of The Midnight Library was first optioned by Studiocanal and Blueprint Pictures right around the book’s release in 2020, but updates have been scarce in the years since. The script is being written by Laura Wade (Rivals, The Riot Club) and Nick Payne (The Sense of an Ending), who previously worked with Pugh on the A24 romance film We Live in Time. Pre-production will reportedly begin later this year, with filming scheduled to begin in early 2027.

What Is The Midnight Library About?

The Midnight Library follows Nora Seed, who finds herself in a library between life and death with the chance to experience all the potential lives she could have lived. The story serves as allegorical exploration of mental health, focusing on depression, suicide and regret. Haig’s novel has sold 15 million copies worldwide and has been translated into 56 languages in the years since its debut.

“I am so happy that Nora’s story is in such great hands, and that her myriad possibilities will be vividly reawakened by the absolute perfect team,” Haig said in a statement. “And I can’t wait for people to see my book reimagined for the big screen.”

Producers on the project will include Pugh, Anita Overland, and Graham Broadbent and Pete Czernin of Blueprint Pictures. Executive producers will include Haig, Blueprint’s Ben Knight and Diarmuid McKeown, and Anna Marsh, Ron Halpern and Dan MacRae for Studiocanal.

“I’d had an idea about a library between life and death for a long time,” Haig previously told Leslie Lindsay. “I have always been fascinated with fantastical libraries, such as Jorge Luis Borges’s LIBRARY OF BABEL, because I feel libraries are a kind of magic in themselves. In the Midnight Library, each book on the shelf is another version of the protagonist, Nora Seed’s, life. There are infinite books and infinite versions, so – with the librarian’s help – she has a chance to undo some of her regrets. Every time she opens a book, she falls into that life. I think the idea of wondering how your life would have played out differently is one that a lot of us think about from time to time. Also, my own personal experience with mental health issues, like depression and anxiety, obviously informed some of Nora’s experience.”

(featured image: Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures)

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