A spec script called Maggie set off a bidding war today with Timur Bekmambetov emerging as the winner with his most powerful enemy’s head on a pike and a still-beating heart clenched between his teeth. At least six bidders wanted a piece of the script that re-imagines the zombie mythos but more importantly, it can be done on the cheap. The clever plot centers on the titular 16-year old character who becomes infected by a zombie. Rather than dying quickly and rising from the dead, the process is elongated over six months. The film will follow her slow transformation as she continues to live with her family.

The film will be directed by visual effects maestro Henry Hobson and was written by screenwriter/title effects artist/NASA satellite guidance program programmer John Scott 3. James Franco, you have been bested. (Deadline)