J.J. Abrams is attached to direct Universal Pictures' "The Good Sailor," a drama being written by Brent Hanley that revolves around the sinking of the heavy cruiser USS Indianapolis. Chris Moore is producing with Abrams, who will oversee the development of the story.

On July 30, 1945, the Indianapolis was torpedoed by a Japanese submarine in the Philippine Sea. Hundreds went down with the ship, but about 900 sailors were left in shark-infested waters. The ship was never missed, and by the time the survivors were spotted by accident five days later, only 316 remained. The ship's captain, Charles McVay III, was later court-martialed for the incident, the only World War II Navy captain to be court-martialed for losing his ship.

In the late 1990s, Hunter Scott, a seventh-grader from Pensacola, Fla., decided to do a school project on the event after watching "Jaws," in which the incident is recalled in a monologue. Beginning by contacting survivors, the boy's project generated publicity that led to a re-examination of the incident and McVay's exoneration in 2001 of culpability in the loss of the ship and its crew members.

Combining elements of the past and present, the drama would focus on the 12-year-old boy and his relationship with one of the ship's survivors, whom he forces to deal with the haunting events of 1945.

Universal's vice chairman of worldwide production Scott Stuber and senior vp Dylan Clark are overseeing.

WMA-repped Abrams, who is enjoying high ratings for both "Lost" and "Alias," is prepping to direct "Mission: Impossible 3" for Paramount Pictures.

Hanley's credits include "Frailty" and "Holes." He is repped by Gersh, Lindsay Williams of the Gotham Group and attorneys Tom Hansen and Jason Hendler.

Endeavor-repped Moore's credits include the "American Pie" movies, the "Project Greenlight" movies and "Good Will Hunting." He and Abrams teamed up to produce "Joy Ride," which Abrams also wrote.