Six-time Oscar nominee and Oscar-winner Kate Winslet is negotiating for a role in Divergent, the adaptation of the young adult novel from author Veronica Roth.  Directed by Neil Burger (Limitless), Divergent is a dystopian tale that stars Shailene Woodley (The Descendants) as a sixteen-year-old girl who is forced to compete in a ritual that divides her family and just so happens to fall in love with a frustrating young man along the way. This would mark the first franchise starter for Winslet as Summit is planning a trilogy, but it is still unknown which part she would play.  Divergent is set to open March 21, 2014.  Hit the jump for more.

Variety reports

that Winslet is nearing a deal for Divergent, but any details beyond that are not available.  She'll next be seen in the comedy anthology Movie 43 which opens this weekend and later this year in Labor Day.  Divergent is still searching for its male lead opposite Woodley, having tested Lucas Till (X-Men: First Class), Alex Pettyfer (Magic Mike) and Jeremy Irvine (War Horse) among others.  Variety also reports that the studio may aim for an older star (those tested have been in their early twenties) after not finding a suitable match in the last go-round.

Here’s the synopsis from the Veronica Roth novel, Divergent (via Amazon):

In Beatrice Prior’s dystopian Chicago, society is divided into five factions, each dedicated to the cultivation of a particular virtue—Candor (the honest), Abnegation (the selfless), Dauntless (the brave), Amity (the peaceful), and Erudite (the intelligent). On an appointed day of every year, all sixteen-year-olds must select the faction to which they will devote the rest of their lives. For Beatrice, the decision is between staying with her family and being who she really is—she can’t have both. So she makes a choice that surprises everyone, including herself.

During the highly competitive initiation that follows, Beatrice renames herself Tris and struggles to determine who her friends really are—and where, exactly, a romance with a sometimes fascinating, sometimes infuriating boy fits into the life she’s chosen. But Tris also has a secret, one she’s kept hidden from everyone because she’s been warned it can mean death. And as she discovers a growing conflict that threatens to unravel her seemingly perfect society, she also learns that her secret might help her save those she loves . . . or it might destroy her.