JJ Abrams to Produce ‘One Last Thing Before I Go’

The most surprising thing about Paramount acquiring the rights to Jonathan Tropper's novel 'One Last Thing Before I Go' is not the price tag (a million bucks is pretty normal for a Hollywood bidding war) nor the fact that the book won't even be on shelves until August (countless books have been optioned prior to release). It's the fact that JJ Abrams, known to most audiences for dabbling in science fiction and action, will be producing this "...moving, funny look at one broken family's attempt to reconnect -- without destroying each other in the process."

That quote is taken from the official description for the novel and because we like to keep you informed, here's the rest:

Silver has begun to accept that life isn’t going to turn out as he expected. His ex-wife is about to marry a terrific guy Silver can’t quite bring himself to hate. And his Princeton-bound teenage daughter Casey has just confided in him that she’s pregnant—because he’s the one she cares least about letting down. With the wedding looming and Casey in crisis, this broken family struggles, bonds, and comes together only to risk damaging each other even more. Lives begin anew, change radically, or in Silver’s case—as he discovers that he could die at any moment without an operation he refuses to have—may be about to end in an instant.

'One Last Thing Before I Go' is Tropper's sixth novel and his third to have the film rights snatched up. In addition to being the kind of novelist with the willpower to write a new book every two years, he's pretty much one of the busiest men in Hollywood right now. He adapted his book 'This Is Where I Leave You' for director Adam Shankman, wrote 'Harvey' for Steven Spielberg (a production that was shut down at the literal last minute) and is currently executive producing 'Banshee,' a Cinemax series that he co-created. We can only assume that he never sleeps.

But what about this project attracted the attention of JJ Abrams, who is currently knee deep in principle photography for 'Star Trek 2'? Perhaps the project didn't necessarily appeal to the part of him that co-created 'Lost' and 'Alias,' but the part of him that created 'Felicity.' In any case, it's going to be odd to see the Bad Robot banner in front of a film that's not filled with aliens and/or explosions. Abrams has a pretty firm hold on the geek market, but he's a smart man...and smart men know when to expand their horizons.

Or he could, you know, just really like the book.