Vertigo Comics

Oscar-nominated writer Andrea Berloff has been tapped by New Line Cinema to adapt and direct THE KITCHEN, the Tracking Board has confirmed. This will be the directorial debut for Berloff.

Based on the Vertigo comic by Ollie Masters and Ming Doyle, Kitchen follows the wives of some Irish mobsters who take over their spouses’ organized crime ring after said spouses land in prison. It takes place in 1970s Hell’s Kitchen and when Raven, Kathy, and Angie get a taste of the power that has for so long been exclusively with the men in their lives, they don’t want to give it up and prove they’re a force to be reckoned with.

The comic, as it has been praised for, turns the crime genre on its head, which has for too long been dominated by male mobsters and enforcers. With the women taking their agency back, this comic and film project helps continue to meet the demands for more narratives about women.

This announcement is also timely, given the recent report about the EEOC’s investigation into studios’ discrimination against female directors. While securing Berloff as director has likely been in the works for some time and has nothing to do with the investigation, it’s heartening to see women getting these opportunities regardless.

Previously, Berloff wrote the screenplays for films like World Trade Center, Blood Father, and Sleepless. She was nominated for an Oscar last year for Best Original Screenplay for Straight Outta Compton. Currently, she’s working on writing The Legend of Conan for Universal and a Dangerous Odds adaptation at Warner Bros.

She’s repped by CAA and Management 360.

—TO SEE ALL THE PROJECT DETAILS CLICK HERE—

Anya Crittenton | Associate Editor

This news was first reported by the Hollywood Reporter.