Zach Helm to Write 'Jumanji' Remake (Exclusive)

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Zach Helm, who garnered acclaim for penning Stranger Than Fiction, has been tapped to write Columbia’s reimagining of Jumanji.

Matt Tolmach and Bill Teitler are producing the project, which is a new adaptation of the Chris Van Allsburg's 1981 book. The tome was made into a 1995 movie directed by Joe Johnston that starred Robin Williams and a young Kirsten Dunst. Ted Field and Mike Weber are exec producing the new project.

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The movie, blending light comedy and family adventure, told of a board game come to life as two kids discover the supernatural game and release a man trapped in there decades earlier. They also unleash jungle forces and must team up with the man to quell the game’s powerful magic.

The 2005 Jon Favreau-directed film Zathura was a sequel of sorts.

Word of a remake came early this summer when Sony execs said they were developing the project as “an update for the present."

Helm has proven to have a whimsical touch with Stranger Than Fiction and his Mr. Magorium’s Wonder Emporium, the latter of which he directed. He recently did rewrite work on The Secret Life of Walter Mitty, another comedic adventure movie that stars Ben Stiller and will be released Dec. 25, 2013.

He is repped by CAA.