Rights Available! 'Wicked' Novelist's Fairy-Tale Remix Up for Grabs

This story first appeared in the July 31 issue of The Hollywood Reporter magazine. To receive the magazine, click here to subscribe.

Universal has been trying to find a way to bring Gregory Maguire's best-selling novel and Broadway hit Wicked to the big screen. Now, rival studios can land their own Maguire property with After Alice, a re-interpretation of Alice in Wonderland. That's just one of two hot novels beginning to make the rounds this week.

Absolutely True Lies (Touchstone) by Rachel Stuhler
Agent: Doug Stewart (Sterling Lord Literistic)

A fledgling entertainment writer assigned to pen a teen pop star's memoir realizes the young celebrity's squeaky-clean image is purely a work of fiction in this summer's must-read by a real-life celebrity ghostwriter.

After Alice (William Morrow) by Gregory Maguire
Agent: Steve Fisher (APA)

The Wicked novelist returns Oct. 27 with a fairy-tale remix about the people Alice left behind and the friend who follows her down the rabbit hole.