Another book by Dan Brown is headed to the big screen, but this one couldn’t be further from The Da Vinci Code.
MGM and Akiva Goldsman are adapting Brown’s children’s book, Wild Symphony, as an animated film, Deadline reports.
Brown’s picture book, illustrated by Susan Batori and published in 2020 by Rodale Kids, tells the story of an all-animal orchestra conducted by a mouse. A critic for Kirkus praised Batori’s “whimsically engaging” illustrations, but wasn’t impressed with the book, writing that it “aims high but falls flat.”
Brown’s books have inspired films before. The Da Vinci Code was adapted into a 2006 film written by Goldsman and directed by Ron Howard; the movie was followed by adaptations of the novels Angels & Demons in 2009 and Inferno in 2016. A television series based on the novel The Lost Symbol ran for one season last year on Peacock.
Goldsman (I Am Legend, Hancock) will produce the Wild Symphony film, and Brown will write the screenplay and the music for the film. He also wrote the music that accompanies the book.
“As a young child, I was absolutely enthralled by the film Fantasia and its magical fusion of animation and classical music,” Brown said. “In many ways, my lifetime love of classical music began with film, and so I’m especially excited to be working with such talented partners to bring Wild Symphony to life in the form of an animated feature.”
Michael Schaub is a Texas-based journalist and regular contributor to NPR.
