Buffy in Wonderland

Sarah Michelle Gellar is to play a grown-up version of Lewis Carroll's 'Alice'.

Jun 21 2005

Sarah Michelle Gellar is to play the lead role in an adaptation of the hugely successful video game 'American McGee's Alice'.

Directed by Marcus Nispel, 'Alice' is a sick and twisted update of Lewis Carroll's classic fairy tale 'Alice in Wonderland', in which the titular character has reached womanhood and is trying to deal with the death of her family in a fire.

She returns to 'Wonderland', where she must confront her darkest fears and face the evil Queen of Hearts if she wants to get back to the real world.

The original game, which was created by 'Doom' and 'Quake' designer McGee, was released by Electronic Arts in December 2000 and became an immediate critical and commercial success.

'A Nightmare on Elm Street' director Wes Craven was originally attached to direct a movie version, with Natalie Portman rumoured to star, but that eventually fell through.

The new star and director are no strangers to dark and twisted horror, however.

Nispel helmed 'The Texas Chainsaw Massacre' in 2003, while 'Buffy the Vampire Slayer' star Gellar is fast approaching 'scream queen' status, having appeared in 'Scream 2', 'I Know What You Did Last Summer' and the hugely successful Japanese remake 'The Grudge'.

'Alice' will go into procduction when Gellar has finished work on Richard Kelly's 'Donnie Darko' follow-up 'Southland Tales' and the literary adaptation 'The Girls' Guide to Hunting and Fishing'.