Sabrina The Teenage Witch is getting a makeover at Sony Pictures. The precocious teen witch who originated in 60s Archie Comics, is being recast as a superhero. The live action film will be an origin story in the vein of Spider-Man, about a young girl coming to terms with her remarkable powers.

Scribes Andrew Barrer & Gabriel Ferrari (they wrote Die In A Gunfight for MRC) will write the script, and Real Steel producers Don Murphy and Susan Montford are producing. Mark Waters, who worked on the presentation that Sony Pictures sparked to, might direct depending on scheduling. Archie Comics’ Jon Goldwater will be executive producer and screenwriter Jeff Stockwell, who also worked on the presentation, will be co-producer.

Sabrina previously had been turned into animated tv series in 1969, 1971 and again in 1999 and the source material was turned into the Melissa Joan Hart sitcom that ran seven seasons. While the tone of the movie will be edgier, they are keeping her talking black cat Salem, who here is a transformed prince creating unique love stories for Sabrina. The project is a priority for the studio with Doug Belgrad and Hannah Minghella fast tracking the negotiations.

“We mentioned it in a meeting to Amy Pascal who chimed in “I’m the little witch girl,’” Murphy and Montford said. “From then on we knew it was the right home.”

http://www.deadline.com/hollywood/

http://upandcomers.net/2012/04/12/sabrina-the-teenage-witch-is-headed-for-the-big-screen-heres-5-actresses-to-consider-for-the-role/

Hailee Steinfeld
Fifteen year old Hailee Steinfeld may be the most age-appropriate choice on our list, but hey, it’s hard to find teenage actors who have shown the talent and charisma needed to carry a major studio feature. Of course, Steinfeld herself is an exception to that rule, having been plucked from obscurity by the Coen Brothers to star in “True Grit”, her first film role that led her all the way to an Oscar nomination. And her role as Mattie Ross certainly showed she has the gumption and subtle comedic talents needed to pull off a teenage witch coming of age and dealing with her new powers.

Jane Levy
Sometimes dubbed “the next Emma Stone”, Jane Levy certainly does share some things in common with America’s newest sweetheart, including keen comedic timing and a sardonic wit. While Stone herself also seems rather perfect to play an edgier version of the squeaky clean Sabrina, Levy displays plenty of that ability every week on her ABC sitcom “Suburgatory”, and will benefit more from being “discovered” by a major studio. And while she may be committed to TV (the show is a hit!) she’s found plenty of time to do movies, including taking on the female lead in Sam Raimi’s “Evil Dead” reboot.

Britt Robertson
Britt Robertson has got the precocious teenager thing down pat, as shown in her role as orphaned Lux on the CW’s short-lived “Life Unexpected”, and she knows a thing or two about tapping into the edgier side of magic as a teenage witch on the same network’s current “Secret Circle.” The show is on the bubble and may not be renewed for a second season, so Robertson could be free soon to explore a movie career. And there’s really no need to worry about typecasting, as shows that only run for one season (minus a “My So-Called Life” or two) aren’t remembered for very long.

Haley Bennett
One young actress who has been getting tons of notice lately is Haley Bennett, one time stuck in mindless bad teen movies like “The Hautning of Molly Hartley”. But when Terrence Malick cast her as one of the female leads in his follow-up to “The Tree Of Life”, she suddenly became one to watch. While she’s the oldest on our list at 24, she still looks as youthful as a teenager and is obviously not above playing younger than her age, as she fought to the very end to play teenage horror icon “Carrie” before losing out to Chloe Moretz. Sabrina is a bit of a lighter character, but Bennett has shown comedic chops in her previous work too. Who remembers slutty-spiritual pop star Cora Corman in Hugh Grant rom-com “Music & Lyrics”?

Shailene Woodley
If you saw “The Descendants”, you would have to agree just how brilliantly Shailene Woodley would play Sabrina. Her “Descendants” character Alex took precocious maybe a bit further than Sabrina would ever go, but Woodley demonstrated a wonderful and dark sardonic wit, a slowly revealed sense of inner strength, and commanded the screen opposite George Clooney. And her real life personality is just about as bubbly and happy as Alex was angry. All this to say, the girl’s got range, and a combination of her own personality plus a bit of the edginess she brought to “The Descendants” is a recipe for the perfect Sabrina.

It would be nice if they stay true to the comic.

What about Chloe Grace Moretz?