Percival Everett’s novel, James, is officially getting a movie adaptation, and it is currently in pre-production!
I genuinely did not think the book world could produce a more exciting adaptation announcement than it already had this year—and then this dropped, and I had to sit down for a moment.
Universal Pictures has acquired the feature film rights to James, the latest novel by Percival Everett, whose Erasure was adapted into American Fiction. Steven Spielberg will executive produce the movie through his company, Amblin Partners, with Taika Waititi in early talks to direct.
A Pulitzer Prize-winning novel. Spielberg producing. Waititi directing. This is not a drill.
What Is James Novel About?
If you haven’t read James yet, let me be the one to tell you: stop what you’re doing and go get it.
James is a novel by Percival Everett, published by Doubleday in 2024. It is a reimagining of Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain, but narrated by Huckleberry’s friend on his travels, the enslaved man Jim, rather than by Huck as in the original.
It sounds like a simple premise shift. It is so much more than that.
In Everett’s reimagining, Jim, who goes by the name of James, is a wise and literate man who teaches other slaves to read, and who, like other educated Black men and women, keeps his knowledge a secret to avoid punishment from white slaveowners.
The book’s description reads: “While many narrative set pieces of Adventures of Huckleberry Finn remain in place… Jim’s agency, intelligence, and compassion are shown in a radically new light.”
It is one of the most powerful and inventive novels to come out of American literature in years.
The Awards Say It All!
The literary world responded to James with an extraordinary level of recognition, and it is all deserved.
The novel won the 2024 Kirkus Prize, the National Book Award for Fiction, and the 2025 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction. It was also a finalist for the Booker Prize.
James appeared on 33 lists of the best books of the year. That is a staggering number, and it tells you everything you need to know about how the literary world received it.
The New York Times called it Everett’s “most thrilling novel, but also his most soulful.” The Guardian described it as “a gripping reimagining.” Kirkus gave it a starred review, writing that it delivers one of the noblest characters in American literature, a novel truly worthy of him.
Who Is Percival Everett?
If James is your first encounter with Percival Everett, you are in for a treat, because his back catalog is extraordinary.
His 2001 novel Erasure was adapted into American Fiction in 2023, which earned writer-director Cord Jefferson an Oscar nomination for Best Adapted Screenplay, and star Jeffrey Wright a nomination for Best Actor.
Everett has been writing bold, genre-defying fiction for decades, and James has finally brought him the widespread recognition he has long deserved.
Percival Everett will adapt the screenplay himself and serve as executive producer on the film. The fact that he is writing the screenplay himself is a huge deal; this story will be in the hands of the person who knows it best.
The Dream Team Behind the James Movie Adaptation:
Let’s talk about this creative lineup for a moment, because it is genuinely remarkable.
Universal has assembled a team of Oscar-winners to bring James to the screen. Steven Spielberg will executive produce the project via his Amblin Partners, with Taika Waititi in early talks to direct.
Spielberg is a three-time Oscar winner for Schindler’s List and Saving Private Ryan. His involvement signals that this is being treated as a serious, prestige picture, not a quick literary cash-in.
Waititi won an Oscar for his adapted screenplay for Jojo Rabbit. His ability to balance emotional weight with unexpected tonal choices makes him an intriguing choice for a story that is both devastating and darkly funny. His most recent projects include Klara and the Sun, starring Jenna Ortega and Amy Adams.
Casting & Release Date
As of now, no cast has been announced, and no release date has been set. The project is still in early development, with Waititi’s directorial deal not yet fully finalized at the time of the announcement.
Given the scale of the creative team involved and the prestige nature of the material, this will likely be a carefully developed production. A release before 2027 seems unlikely, but with a team like this, patience will absolutely be worth it.
With the likes of Spielberg and Waititi attached to such a prestigious literary work, James is likely to be awards-season material. Given that American Fiction, an adaptation of Everett’s other novel, already had major Oscar success, the expectations for this one are sky-high.
Should You Read the Book First?
Absolutely, unequivocally, yes.
James is the kind of novel that deserves your full, unhurried attention before any screen interpretation arrives. Everett’s prose has a precision and an irony that lives on the page in a way that no film—however brilliant—can fully replicate. The internal life of Jim, the code-switching, the philosophical dream sequences, the slow burn of his fury and his love for his family; these are things you want to experience for yourself first.
Reading Adventures of Huckleberry Finn beforehand isn’t required, but it enriches the experience enormously. Seeing exactly what Everett chose to keep, discard, and completely transform is part of what makes James such a stunning achievement.
This is one of the most important American novels of the decade. And now it’s heading to the big screen with one of the greatest filmmakers alive producing it. We’ll be watching this one very closely.
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