Victoria Stouse Writes Silver Wings WWII Tale Of First Female Aviators

EXCLUSIVE: Finding Dory scribe Victoria Strouse has been tapped by Fox 2000 to adapt the nonfiction Katherine Sharp Landdeck book The Women With Silver Wings, which Tony-winning Hamilton director Thomas Kail is developing to direct. The studio last April teamed with Anonymous Content and Old 320 Sycamore to secure the rights and craft a Hidden Figures-like drama that recounts the true story of WWII’s Women Airforce Service Pilots (WASP), the first women to ever fly for the U.S. military.

United in a special sisterhood, these trailblazing women broke social norms while bravely serving their country. After the war, the U.S. government refused to officially recognize the WASPs, denying them veteran benefits and burying their legacies. Only in 2009, after a decades-long battle, are the women’s WWII contributions finally honored, when they are granted the Congressional Gold Medal and officially recognized as military veterans. Their Veteran status was finally, fully recognized when in 2017 they restored their right to be laid to rest in Arlington National Cemetery. Landdeck is an esteemed historian and her book is being published by Penguin Random House’s Crown imprint.

The film will be produced by Anonymous Content’s Michael Sugar (Spotlight) along with Kail and his Old 320 Sycamore banner. Kail also won the Emmy for Grease Live. Ashley Zalta of Anonymous Content, Kate Sullivan of Old 320 Sycamore, and Todd Shuster of Aevitas Creative Management will be exec producers, and Angela Christian and the author will be co-producers.

Fox 2000 president Elizabeth Gabler will get this one ready for the tarmac with exec veep Erin Siminoff. Strouse, who sold her original script Us Vs. Them to Universal with Josh Greenbaum attached to direct, is repped by Verve. Jen Marshall negotiated the sale of the book to Crown. She’s with Aevitas Creative Management.