DreamWorks Goes to 'War'

Lee Hall to Adapt Michael Morpurgo Novel
Jay A. Fernandez
The Hollywood Reporter
December 16, 2009

DreamWorks Studios has acquired film rights to the 1982 novel, "War Horse," written by Michael Morpurgo. Lee Hall ("Billy Elliot") has been hired to write the adaptation.

Steven Spielberg, Kathleen Kennedy, Frank Marshall and Revel Guest are producing the project.

Morpurgo's book tells the epic tale of a friendship between a boy and a horse, who are separated, but whose fates continue to be intertwined over the course of World War I. "Horse" was a runner-up for the Whitbread Award.

"From the moment I read Michael Morpurgo's novel 'War Horse' I knew this was a film I wanted DreamWorks to make," said Spielberg. "Its heart and its message provide a story that can be felt in every country."