“Parenthood” actress Mae Whitman is in negotiations to star in coming-of-age tale “The DUFF” for CBS Films.

Ari Sandel was attached to direct the project last year from Josh A. Cagan’s adaptation of the novel by Kody Keplinger.

The story is centered on a high school senior whose world is turned upside down when she learns that she has been labeled by her group of friends as the DUFF (designated ugly fat friend), a sidekick to her prettier more popular friends. She becomes determined to reinvent herself — and enlist her fellow DUFFs — in a scheme to overthrow the school’s evil queen.

McG and Mary Viola are producing for Wonderland Sound and Vision along with Vast Entertainment’s Lane Shefter Bishop, who brought the book to Wonderland.

CBS Films acquired the feature rights “The D.U.F.F.” in 2011. Mark Ross and Alex Ginno are overseeing the project for CBS Films.

The film is expected to shoot in Atlanta this summer.

Whitman also starred in “The Perks of Being a Wallflower.” She is repped by ICM Partners.