Golden Globe winner Sarah Paulson and Emmy nominee Elle Fanning have signed on for a new adaptation of I Am Sybil, Flora Rheta Schreiber’s best-selling 1973 nonfiction novel.

Mirrah Foulkes directs from a script she co-wrote with Jen Silverman, recreating the true story of Sybil, one of the first widely recognized cases of dissociative identity disorder.

The source material the new film will draw on is Debbie Nathan’s 2011 book Sybil Exposed: The Extraordinary Story Behind the Famous Multiple Personality Case, one of a number of texts that dispute the facts of Schreiber’s account.

I Am Sybil is not the first film to explore the well-known case. Sally Field starred as the titular character, with Joanne Woodward as the psychiatrist, in the 1976 CBS made-for-television film Sybil. The film gained critical praise and four Emmy Awards, including the best actress win for Field. In 2007, a second made-for-television adaptation (also titled Sybil), starring Tammy Blanchard and Jessica Lange, aired on CBS. While the second film's reception was less favorable than the first, Blanchard and Lange were praised for their portrayals.

Sarah Paulson gained recognition for her many collaborations with award-winning series creator Ryan Murphy, which began with American Horror Story. On top of I Am Sybil, she’ll star in Searchlight Pictures’ upcoming horror thriller Dust.

Elle Fanning recently reprise her role acclaimed role as Catherine the Great in Hulu’s The Great Season 2. Additionally, the Maleficent actress has also recently signed on to join the casts of Rosebushpruning with Kristen Stewart and Bob Dylan biopic A Complete Unknown with Timothée Chalamet.

Source: Press Release