Its masked image may have been inspired by a Hollywood film, but now Anonymous is itself set to get the Hollywood treatment, with a film about the Anonymous vs. Steubenville case being worked up by Brad Pitt and the producers of 12 Years A Slave.

Plan B Entertainment has secured the rights to 'Anonymous vs. Steubenville', a Rolling Stone article by David Kushner about online vigilante Deric Lostutter's role in a landmark rape case.

Lostutter helped expose a town-wide coverup of a teenage girl's rape by two high school football players, bringing charges to the rapists and helping get the high school superintendent, the elementary school principal and two high school coaches indicted for concealing the truth, but also risking facing a 20-year sentence himself in the process.

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The hacktivist will serve as the film's protagonist, suggesting it may look at Anonymous as a whole rather than focusing in on the specifics of the case.

There was some concern that the news may be an April Fools hoax given the combination of Brad Pitt and Anonymous and the fact that it would see 12 Years A Slave producers going straight from one victim narrative to the next, but Lostutter later confirmed the film on Twitter.

"All I can say until further notice from my agent and lawyer is it's real, it's been in the works for a while now, and no further comment," he said.

The as yet untitled movie will be co-produced by New Regency, with no word on any castings yet.