Emma Watson is poised to reteam with The Perks of Being a Wallflower writer/director Stephen Chbosky on another adaptation.  While Chbosky adapted Perks from his own novel, Deadline reports that the director has now signed on to helm an adaptation of Adena Halpern’s book 29, which will be titled While We’re Young.  The book revolves around a young-at-heart 75-year-old named Ellie who feels she has more in common with her 29-year-old granddaughter Lucy than her 55-year-old daughter Barbara.  On her birthday, Ellie wishes she could be 29 again for just one day, and is surprised to find that the wish magically comes true.  The story explores three generations of women and how one day changes everything they know about each other.

While the premise sounds a tad saccharine, so did the logline for Perks and Chbosky crafted that film into a mature, emotional, and honest look at young life; he's more than earned the benefit of the doubt.  Hit the jump for more. 

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Image via Summit Entertainment

With The Perks of Being a Wallflower, Watson announced herself as a serious dramatic actress and not just Hermione from the Harry Potter films, so it’s encouraging to see her teaming up with Chbosky once again.  Chbosky won’t be taking on scripting duties this time around, as (500) Days of Summer and The Spectacular Now scribes Michael H. Weber and Scott Neustadter are set to pen the adaptation for 20th Century Fox.  The duo have quickly become the go-to scribes for emotional novel adaptations, as they also penned the upcoming The Fault in Our Stars starring Shailene Woodley. 

Watson is currently gearing up to film the drama Your Voice in My Head, in which she plays the dramatic lead for director Francesca Gregorini.  She will next be seen onscreen in director Darren Aronofsky’s Biblical epic Noah, which opens next spring.  Read a synopsis for 29 below.

Ellie Jerome is a young-at-heart seventy-five-year-old who feels she has more in common with her twenty-nine-year-old granddaughter, Lucy, than her fifty-five-year-old daughter, Barbara. Ellie’s done everything she can to stay young, and the last thing she wants is to celebrate another birthday. So when she finds herself confronted with a cake full of candles, Ellie wishes more than anything that she could be twenty-nine again, just for one day. But who expects a wish like that to come true?

29 is the story of three generations of women and how one magical day shakes up everything they know about each other. While Ellie finds that the life of a twenty-something is not as carefree as she expected, the sheer joy of being young again prompts her to consider living her life all over. Does she dare stay young for more than this day, even if it means leaving everyone she loves behind?

Fresh, funny, and delightful, 29 is an enchanting adventure about families, love, and the real lessons of youth. [Amazon]

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