Zorianna Kit

LOS ANGELES (The Hollywood Reporter) --- Kate Winslet is in early negotiations to star as the female lead in Universal Pictures' "The Life of David Gale" for director Alan Parker. The project is slated to go into production Friday in Austin, Texas, with Kevin Spacey and Laura Linney also starring.

"Life," written by Charles Randolph, is a drama about a professor (Spacey) who advocates the abolition of capital punishment. When he is falsely accused and convicted of murdering his best friend and colleague (Linney), he finds himself on death row. He requests that a journalist (Winslet) interview him about his predicament, causing her to take up his case. Eventually, the real circumstances of the crime are revealed.

Nicolas Cage's Intermedia-based Saturn Films, headed by Norm Golightly, initially set "Life" up as a pitch at Warner Bros. The project was then put in turnaround and acquired by Intermedia.

Parker came aboard "Life" in the fall, and the project was subsequently set up at Universal, where Parker and his Dirty Hands Prods. have a first-look label relationship via the PolyGram acquisition (HR 10/30).

"Life" is being produced by Intermedia, Saturn, Dirty Hands and Lisa Moran.

The project marks Winslet's third collaboration with Intermedia. The actress next stars in the company's upcoming indie feature "Enigma" directed by Michael Apted and "Iris: A Memoir of Iris Murdoch," which Miramax is distributing domestically.

Winslet, repped by WMA, is a double Academy Award nominee, having been nominated for her roles in "Titanic" and "Sense and Sensibility." She most recently starred onscreen in "Quills."