The Zola Twitter story about a wild road trip to Florida that went viral late last year is in development to be turned into a feature film which actor James Franco will direct.

James’s publicist confirmed reports that he, Andrew Neel and the production company Killer Films were working on an adaptation of a Rolling Stone magazine article about Aziah “Zola” Wells’s 148-tweet account of a road trip with a stripper, her boyfriend and a pimp.

(Daniel Torok/AP/Press Association Images)
James Franco is in talks to direct the Twitter story (Daniel Torok/AP/Press Association Images)

Zola’s story took the internet by storm in October, captivating everyone from Selma director Ava DuVernay to Missy Elliott, who both tweeted about the saga.

James has previously directed films such as As I Lay Dying and The Sound And The Fury. He is currently working on The Disaster Artist, a behind-the-scenes look at the filming of cult hit The Room.

Andrew and Mike Roberts are writing the script. There is no cast or distributor set.