Charlize Theron in the running for 'Dark Places'

According to Deadline.com, Charlize Theron is interested in the "Dark Places" lead role. It will be Gilles Paquet-Brenner's first movie in English based on a novel by Gillian Flynn. The South African actress is in the running to replace Amy Adams who was attached to the film in spring 2012.

After Tatiana de Rosnay's "Sarah's Key," the director will seek inspiration in the literary thriller "Dark Places" for his first movie in English. According to the website, filming on this Franco-American coproduction is scheduled for March.

Whether Charlize Theron joins the project or not, "Dark Places" will offer the lead actress a complex part. The plot will center on a woman who survives her family's massacre for which her young brother was jailed 25 years before. A club of amateurs who specialize in criminal cases cast doubt on the official version of events and in doing so, put her innocence into question.

Hollywood is increasingly becoming interested in up-and-coming thriller author Gillian Flynn. At the end of January, the professional press linked David Fincher to an adaptation of "Gone Girl."