WARNERS, LIN OFF TO ‘OTHERLAND’

Warner Bros. is heading to “Otherland,” acquiring feature rights to Tad Williams’ sci-fi book series and setting it up with Dan Lin to produce.

Studio has tapped John Scott III to script the film, based on the four books published by DAW-Penguin USA between 1996 and 2001 as “City of Golden Shadow,” “River of Blue Fire,” “Mountain of Black Glass” and “Sea of Silver Light.”

Story for the adaptation is set 100 years in the future and follows a group of unexpected heroes who must escape an assassin and make their way through epic digital worlds to unravel a conspiracy that threatens to destroy humanity.

Seanne Winslow Wehrenfennig at Lin Pictures will serve as co-producer and oversee for Lin Pictures.

Lin’s a producer on “Sherlock Holmes: Game of Shadows” and is in post-production on period drama “Gangster Squad,” starring Josh Brolin, Ryan Gosling, and Sean Penn, directed by Ruben Fleischer. He’s also producing “Lego: the Piece of Resistance,” written and directed by Chris Miller and Phil Lord, with Warners planning a 2014 release.

Scott’s zombie script “Maggie” made the top 10 of the 2011 Black List and was the top title of the 2011 Blood List, the top 13 most-liked unproduced screenplays in the horror, thriller, sci-fi, fantasy, and dark comedy/drama genres. “Maggie” is in pre-production with Henry Hobson directing, and Pierre-Ange Le Pogam, Matt Baer, and Trevor Kaufman producing.

Scott is also adapting Isaac Asivmov’s “Caves of Steel” for Fox, also with Hobson attached to direct.

WME represents the “Otherland” book rights. Scott is repped by CAA and managed by Trevor Kaufman.