Quvenzhane Wallis to Play a Child Genius in 'Counting By 7s'

Without Quvenzhane Wallis stealing hearts in Beasts of the Southern Wild, there's no way that small-budget film would have been the sleeper hit it turned out to be. Wallis has built upon that Oscar-nominated performance and taken it to her first big studio film in the remake of Annie, and now she's landed another leading role.

Wallis will star in Counting by 7s, an adaptation of Holly Goldberg Sloan's best-selling novel. In what sounds like it could be similar to Akeelah and the Bee (which is a very good thing), Wallis will play 12-year-old genius Willow Chance, the adopted child of two parents who nurture her spirit and intellect. When tragedy strikes and Willow is left alone in an unfamiliar world, a community of people rally together to support her.

No word on who will be directing or adapting the script so we may be a ways off until this goes into production. Wallis, who also had a small part in 12 Years a Slave, will be seen next in Fathers & Daughters starring Russell Crowe. [Shadow&Act]