Controversial Houdini bio lands at Summit

March 26, 2009 The book also portrayed the master escape artist and magician as a debunker of con artists who pretended to be spiritualists, leading to the controversial theory that Houdini’s death was caused by the spiritual movement as payback. The studio is not looking to make a biopic but rather an action thriller featuring a character who is part Indiana Jones and part Sherlock Holmes. Summit president of production Erik Feig, along with senior vp production Geoff Shaevitz and creative executive Ashley Schlaifer, who brought the book to the studio, will oversee the project.

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