Angelina Jolie (top) and Mariane Pearl

Los Angeles, July 13 (Reuters): Actress Angelina Jolie will star in a movie as the widow of murdered Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl, trade paper Daily Variety reported in today’s edition.

A Mighty Heart, adapted from Mariane Pearl’s memoir of the same name, will begin shooting within the next five weeks, the paper said. The book details Pearl’s search for her husband, who was abducted and beheaded by militants in Pakistan in early 2002.

“I am delighted that Angelina Jolie will be playing my role in the adaptation of my book,” Daily Variety quoted Pearl as saying. “I deeply admire her work and what she is committed to.”

English filmmaker Michael Winterbottom, famed for such war-based films as Welcome to Sarajevo and The Road to Guantanamo, will direct. Jolie’s boyfriend, actor Brad Pitt, will produce the project, which will be launched by Paramount Vantage.