Guillermo del Toro is set to produce a new big screen adaptation of Frances Hodgson Burnett's The Secret Garden for Universal Pictures, and they've hired Beasts Of The Southern Wild screenwriter Lucy Alibar to write it. She will work closely with Del Toro while developing the script. Of course, the studio wanted Del Toro to direct the movie, but the guy is already so busy developing other film projects that it's probably not going to happen.
Del Toro is currently developing the haunted house horror movie Crimson Peak and a Pan's Labyrinth stage play; he'll be directing the pilot episode of his TV adaptation of his apocalyptic vampire novel The Strain; and he's already started work on Pacific Rim 2. He also has a ton of other project in the works. This seems like a good film project to be involved with though.
The story follows an orphaned girl who is sent to live with her reclusive uncle. There she discovers a hidden garden containing magical secrets. As you might expect, Del Toro will add his personal touch to the project. According to Deadline, the story will be set in the American South at the turn of the 20th Century.
The last adaptation of this classic story was the 1993 film directed by Agnieska Holland for Warner Bros. What do you think about Del Toro developing The Secret Garden?