Reese Witherspoon to star and produce "Wild"

Fox Searchlight Pictures has announced that director Jean-Marc Vallée began principal photography in Oregon this week on WILD, which is based on author Cheryl Strayed’s NY Times #1 best-seller "Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail" it is the book that re-launched Oprah’s Book Club 2.0. The film stars Oscar winner Reese Witherspoon (WALK THE LINE, MUD). The screenplay is adapted by Oscar nominated writer Nick Hornby (AN EDUCATION, High Fidelity). Witherspoon and Bruna Papandrea (WARM BODIES, ALL GOOD THINGS) are producing with River Road Entertainment’s Oscar nominated Bill Pohlad (THE TREE OF LIFE, 12 YEARS A SLAVE).  The film’s executive producers are Hornby, Bergen Swanson (THE KIDS ARE ALRIGHT) and Nathan Ross (DALLAS BUYERS CLUB), Vallée’s producing partner. [hit the jump to continue to the synopsis and other additional details]

With the dissolution of her marriage and the death of her mother, Cheryl Strayed (Reese Witherspoon) has lost all hope.  After years of reckless, destructive behavior, she makes a rash decision.  With absolutely no experience, driven only by sheer determination, Cheryl hikes more than a thousand miles of the Pacific Crest Trail, alone.  WILD powerfully captures the terrors and pleasures of one young woman forging ahead against all odds on a journey that maddens, strengthens, and ultimately heals her.

Thomas Sadoski (HBO’s “The Newsroom”), Michiel Huisman (WORLD WAR Z, HBO’s “Treme”), W. Earl Brown (THE LONE RANGER, THERE’S SOMETHING ABOUT MARY), Gaby Hoffman (SLEEPLESS IN SEATTLE, VERONICA MARS), and Kevin Rankin (DAWN OF THE PLANET OF THE APES, DALLAS BUYERS CLUB) have also joined the cast.  The film will shoot on location in Oregon and California.

“I am truly honored to have the opportunity to bring Cheryl Strayed’s amazing journey to life on film, and to work with Pacific Standard, River Road Entertainment, Fox Searchlight, and Reese, “says Vallée. “There is so much naked honesty to her book, so much humanity. And I can say the same about Nick Hornby’s screenplay: a page turner. I couldn’t put it down. So emotional. So unique. This tale is not just set in the ‘wild’, it’s about the ‘wild’ in all of us.”

“Nick Hornby’s script about author Cheryl Strayed’s 1,100 mile trek through largely untouched wilderness captures the poignancy and spirit of the life-altering journey that the author lived 18 years ago.  Having Cheryl available to us here in Oregon is invaluable… her spirit, her presence, and her input on the physical and emotional details of her trek are a gift to the production,” said Witherspoon and Papandrea.  “We couldn’t mount this challenging production without the unwavering support of Fox Searchlight.”

Claudia Lewis, Fox Searchlight Pictures President of Production states: “We are thrilled to be working with Jean-Marc – as well as Reese, Bruna, and Bill – on his vision of this inspirational and personal story of self-redemption.  I can’t imagine another actress who could personify the grit and vulnerability of the character… Reese’s physical and emotional transformation into Cheryl Strayed will be extraordinary.”

Once again joining director Jean-Marc Vallée (DALLAS BUYERS CLUB, CAFÉ DE FLORE) are director of photography Yves Bélanger (LAURENCE ANYWAYS), production designer John Paino (KILL THE MESSENGER, MARGIN CALL), editor Martin Pensa (CAFÉ DE FLORE), and visual effects supervisor Marc Côté (IMMORTALS, CAFÉ DE FLORE),  who all collaborated with Vallée on his acclaimed DALLAS BUYERS CLUB, starring Matthew McConaughey, Jared Leto and Jennifer Garner.  The costume designer is Melissa Bruning (DAWN OF THE PLANET OF THE APES, PARKER).