DiCaprio buys rights to turn SA novel into TV series

Beeld said DiCaprio's production company, Appian Way, and Media Rights Capital (MRC), an independent film and television company, jointly procured the television rights to Beukes's novel.The plot of the science fiction novel, which is not yet available in the United States but was published in South Africa in April, revolves around a serial killer from Chicago who time-travels to different eras to murder women with talent and potential.

The Shining Girls would be released in the US on Tuesday, but had already garnered praise from The New York Times. Beukes confirmed on Twitter over the weekend that the rights to her novel had been sold."I'm excited. John Ridley from Appian Way was passionate about the book right from the beginning," she said.Beukes was awarded the 2011 Arthur C Clarke prize for science fiction for her previous novel, Zoo City. (Sapa)