'Black Mass' Writer Tackling 'Conan Doyle for the Defense' Adaptation (Exclusive)

Gold Circle Entertainment will produce.

Conan Doyle for the Defense — a true crime story with the famous detective novelist at the center — has been optioned by Pitch Perfect production company Gold Circle Entertainment.

The non-fiction book, from former New York Times obituary writer and author Margalit Fox, tells the true story of how Sherlock Holmes creator Arthur Conan Doyle took on a case of his own. When an immigrant Jewish cardsharp, Oscar Slater, was wrongfully convicted for the brutal murder of a wealthy woman in Glasgow in 1908, even though he was widely known to be innocent, Doyle investigated the case and helped to set the man free.

Mark Mallouk, one of the writers behind the Johnny Depp starrer Black Mass, will adapt the book for the big screen.

David Brooks will produce alongside Gold Circle.

Mallouk adapted Rolling Stone article Dukes of Oxy for Michael De Luca Productions and most recently wrote a pilot for a limited series on Eliot Ness and his pursuit of Cleveland’s Torso Killer for USA and UCP. He is repped by UTA, the U.K.'s 42 and McKuin Frankel.

Fox, whose other books include Talking Hands and The Riddle of the Labyrinth, is repped by Gersh and Brockman.