Meg Ryan is to follow in the footsteps of Drew Barrymore, Jodie Foster and Barbra Streisand and join the ranks of actors-turned-directors.
Her debut behind the camera is called Into the Beautiful, and is a comedy-drama along the lines of "a contemporary Big Chill with longtime friends reconnecting", reports Variety. The script has been written by Anne Meredith and the producing team includes The Devil Wears Prada's Wendy Finerman, whose last credit was the beyond-the-grave romcom PS I Love You.
Though Ryan is still a major Hollywood figure, her acting career is in something of a downturn – her most recent film of any consequence was 2008's The Women. She has however, been plotting a move into directing for some time: Ryan was publicising this project at Cannes last year (though refused to reveal its title) and was rumoured to be directing an "ensemble drama" called Little Black Train when she signed to United Talent Agency a fortnight ago.
Now that Into the Beautiful is set to be Ryan's first directing job, Finerman said: "I think this is the perfect project for Meg to bring to life. She's poignant and funny and heartfelt." Ryan is not expected to act in the film.
