In 1925, a spelunker (best word ever) named Floyd Collins got stuck in a cave in Kentucky. He was there for almost two weeks, and the resulting 1920s-style news frenzy was apparently one of the first such events, highlighted by "hourly radio bulletins and...nationwide newspaper headlines." Taking a book on the events by Robert Murray and Roger Brucker as his inspiration, Billy Bob Thornton's long-time writing partner Tom Epperson has adapted a screenplay for a Floyd Collins feature; Thornton is expected to both direct and star in the picture for Paramount.

Thornton, who has only directed two films - the little-seen Daddy and Them and 2000's tepidly-reviewed All the Pretty Horses - since he burst onto the scene with Sling Blade has yet to prove that his success with that film wasn't a fluke. The Floyd Collins story is a fascinating one; hopefully Thornton's film will be, as well. (As an aside, there's also a musical about Collins - anyone seen it?)