Julianne Hough finds ‘Safe Haven’ in Southport

Relativity Media released an official announcement yesterday confirming what we already reported last week, that Julianne Hough (Burlesque, Footloose, Rock of Ages) will join Josh Duhamel (Transformers, Touristas) in the latest big screen adaptation of a Nicholas Sparks novel, to be filmed this summer in Southport, NC.

Read on for the official word from the studio:

‘Safe Haven’ by Nicholas Sparks is set and will be filmed in Southport, NC.

Safe Haven is an affirming and suspenseful story about a young woman’s struggle to find love again after she arrives in a small North Carolina town. Her reluctance to join the tight-knit community raises questions about her past.  Slowly, she begins putting down roots, and gains the courage to start a relationship with Alex, a widowed store owner with two young children.  But dark secrets intrude on her new life with such terror that she is forced to rediscover the meaning of sacrifice and rely on the power of love in this deeply moving romantic thriller

“I’m thrilled that Josh and Julianne have agreed to come aboard Safe Haven,” says Sparks. “It’s hard to think of an actor better-suited to play the character of Alex than Josh, and Julianne will bring a combination of vulnerability and strength to the role of Katie.  They are both such talented and charismatic individuals and best of all, they have tremendous personal chemistry, which is essential for this film.”

Lasse Hallstrom (My Life as a Dog, The Cider House Rules) will direct the film, with Sparks overseeing as a producer through his new Nicholas Sparks Productions company. Relativity previously teamed up with Hallstrom and Sparks on the 2010 box office hit Dear John. 

Julianne Hough will film ‘Safe Haven’ in Southport, NC.

Crews have reportedly already started building sets for Safe Haven, which will not only be filmed in Southport, but is also set in the town.

The plot is ”a young woman with a mysterious past lands in Southport, North Carolina where her bond with a widower forces her to confront the dark secret that haunts her,” according to IMDb.

Southport has previously hosted numerous feature film productions, including Firestarter (1984), Weekend at Bernie’s (1989), I Know What You Did Last Summer (1997), and the previous Sparks adaptation A Walk to Remember (2002).

You can find Safe Haven in theaters on February 8, 2013.

Josh Duhamel in ‘Transformers: Dark of the Moon’

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