Filmmaker Jonathan Demme has optioned the film rights for 11/22/63, the upcoming novel by Stephen King, with plans to write, direct, and produce the feature, according to Variety.

The story centers around Jake Epping, a 35-year-old high school English teacher in Lisbon Falls, Maine, who discovers a portal that allows him to travel back in time to attempt to prevent the assassination of President John F. Kennedy in Dallas on November 22, 1963.

King’s book, 11/22/63: A Novel, is scheduled for release on November 8, 2011 (seems like a missed release-date opportunity, doesn’t it?).

Demme, who began his career writing and directing Roger Corman movies, is best known for his 1991 Oscar-winning film The Silence of the Lambs, which was adapted from the Thomas Harris novel; he also directed Philadelphia (for which star Tom Hanks won the Oscar for Best Actor), 2004’s The Manchurian Candidate, and the big-screen adaptation of Toni Morrison’s best-selling novel Beloved.

[Source: Variety]

[Update 12/6/2012] Demme has left the product after disputes with King over his vision for the adaptation, according to MovieWeb.