Shout it to the rooftops! In a world where cancer patients (Hazel), amputees (Gus), and big beautiful redheads (Eleanor) are all getting their shot at the silver screen, we couldn’t be happier to add to that list Bianca Piper—aka The DUFF, aka ‘The Designated Ugly Fat Friend’.

This project has been in the works since 2011.  Ari Sandel is set to direct a script by Josh A. Cagan, adapted from the hit young adult novel.

Check out the synopsis from the book of the same name by Kody Keplinger:

Seventeen-year-old Bianca Piper is cynical and loyal, and she doesn’t think she’s the prettiest of her friends by a long shot. She’s also way too smart to fall for the charms of man-slut and slimy school hottie Wesley Rush. In fact, Bianca hates him. And when he nicknames her “the Duff,” she throws her Coke in his face.

But things aren’t so great at home right now, and Bianca is desperate for a distraction. She ends up kissing Wesley. Worse, she likes it. Eager for escape, Bianca throws herself into a closeted enemies-with-benefits relationship with him.

Until it all goes horribly awry. It turns out Wesley isn’t such a bad listener, and his life is pretty screwed up, too. Suddenly Bianca realizes with absolute horror that she’s falling for the guy she thought she hated more than anyone.

CBS Films has cast Mae Whitman in the starring role of this comedy.  Bianca Piper is smart, funny, and more than a little bit cynical.  Even better: Mae was author Keplinger’s first choice when mentally casting the part on her blog… four years ago!^[1]

Perfectly cast Mae—who, while not at all ugly in our eyes, but we trust in movie magic—has built much of her career on comedy and on voice acting.  You probably remember her from “Parenthood”, “Arrested Development”, and “Scott Pilgrim vs. The World”.  Her voice acting chops include “Avatar: The Last Airbender” where she played water-bending Katara, April O’Neil on the TMNT cartoon reboot, and pretty much any Tinker Bell your little siblings adore watching.

Whitman is joined by actress Bianca Santos who will play the star’s long time BFF, Casey Blythe.

Casey and Bianca have been friends since they were five, with Casey taking the self-appointed role of Bianca’s “protector”.  Loyal, fun loving, and—according to the author—“optimistic about love and romance”, the author envisioned Deborah Ann Woll (True Blood’s Jessica) in her hypothetical casting.^[2]

In the book, Casey is a very tall blonde with a pixie cut.  Santos (who most recently could be found on television in “The Fosters”, and is starring in MTV’s upcoming “Happyland”) is an average height brunette with long lovely hair.  While the casting physically might not match up, we have high hopes that Casey will keep her personality intact with Miss Santos!

Starring opposite Mae Whitman will be Robbie Amell as Wesley Rush—Bianca’s tormentor turned love interest.  Keplinger had cast Jeremy Sumpter in the role of wealthy, intelligent, James Bond-watching, gray-eyed Wesley.^[3] He has a sort of boyish charm about him that Robbie Amell does not.

Robbie looks older but more like a wealthy man’s son.  He has a young Tom Cruise look going for him.  Or he could be John Barrowman’s younger brother—maybe Robbie’s older brother Stephen, who stars with the British actor on CW’s “Arrow”, will steal some of Barrowman’s charm for him?  Either way, it will be interesting to see if the former CW star of “The Tomorrow People” can hold his own against sharp-witted Whitman!

If the producers, director, and cast can knock this one out of the park, be prepared for “The DUFF” to join the ranks of such greats as 2004’s “Mean Girls” and 2010’s “Easy A”!

[2] http://kodymekellkeplinger.blogspot.com/2010/09/duff-characters-week-day-3-casey-blythe.html

[3] http://kodymekellkeplinger.blogspot.com/2010/09/duff-characters-week-day-2-wesley-rush.html