Legendary Pictures has optioned the rights to author Andrew Pyper's forthcoming novel The Damned, which is scheduled for publication in February by Simon & Schuster. The adaptation doesn't have a writer or director attached at this time, but the project will be overseen by Legendary's Alex Hedlund and Tracy Stevens. The plot has been compared to thrillers such as The Sixth Sense and Jacob's Ladder.

The story centers on a man who survives a near-death experience, only to become haunted by the spirit of his twin sister. When he finally moves on and has a shot at real happiness, with a new wife and a stepson, his sister's spirit strikes once again. Andrew Pyper is a well-known author within the thriller genre, penning novels such as The Demonologist. That novel is currently being developed for an adaptation at Universal Pictures and Robert Zemeckis' ImageMovers company.

Legendary Pictures most recently released 300: Rise of an Empire and the blockbuster Godzilla. Its upcoming slate includes highly-anticipated projects such as Michael Mann's Blackhat, Sergey Bodrov's Seventh Son, Guillermo del Toro's Crimson Peak and Duncan Jones' Warcraft.