Does Max Landis have the magic touch? Sony Pictures certainly hopes so, as they've hired the Chronicle writer to tackle a script for Houdini.

It's just the latest film in development about legendary magician Harry Houdini, with a project in the works at Summit Entertainment that has Dean Parisot eyed to direct. There's also a Broadway musical about Houdini in development, which had Hugh Jackman set to star at one point.

What separates Landis' take on Houdini from those other projects? Quite a bit, according to the writer, who wrote on Twitter that his take isn't a biopic, and is "roughly as historically accurate as Raiders of the Lost Ark." It's further said that Landis' Houdini draws inspiration from the tales of H.P. Lovecraft.

[Source: Deadline]