Julia Roberts takes Root

The last time Julia Roberts agreed to make a film with Working Title, it turned into the smash hit Notting Hill. So you can’t blame the company for wanting to work with her again.

This time, however, there’ll be a lot less of Hugh Grant’s toothy grin, floppy hair and annoying stutter. Because Roberts’ new project I a biopic about wildlife conservationist Joan Root, who was tragically murdered in Kenya earlier this year.

Inspired by a Vanity Fair article called A Flowering Evil, the film will track Root’s earlier globetrotting life as she made documentaries with her husband. But when they divorced, she returned to Kenya and launched a campaign to save Lake Naivasha from the local, pollution-happy flower farm industry until her untimely death.

If you were thinking that Richard Curtis wouldn’t be writing this one, good call: Finding Neverland’s David Magee is penning the script, and Working Title is looking for a suitable director and a title for the movie.

The Total Film team are made up of the finest minds in all of film journalism. They are: Editor Jane Crowther, Deputy Editor Matt Maytum, Reviews Ed Matthew Leyland, News Editor Jordan Farley, and Online Editor Emily Murray. Expect exclusive news, reviews, features, and more from the team behind the smarter movie magazine.