Amazon MGM Studios has attached Tyler Nilson, co-director of "The Peanut Butter Falcon," to write and direct its film adaptation of Nicholas Sparks' novel "Counting Miracles," with Alan Ritchson starring. The project brings together an established Sparks screen franchise with a filmmaker known for acclaimed, offbeat indie work, and comes as both Ritchson and producer Denise Di Novi's Di Novi Pictures hold first-look deals with Amazon MGM.

The story follows Army Ranger Tanner Hughes, played by Ritchson, who travels the country consoling families of fallen soldiers before a mysterious letter sends him searching for his unknown father, leading to a small-town romance and a reclusive old man's hidden past. Ritchson will produce via his Dancing Skeleton banner alongside Di Novi, Margaret French Isaac and Sparks' longtime partner Theresa Park. Nilson broke through with 2019's SXSW Audience Award winner "The Peanut Butter Falcon," followed by 2024's "Los Frikis," while Sparks' novels have collectively grossed over $750 million at the box office, with his next adaptation, "Remain" starring Jake Gyllenhaal, due in February 2027.