Silvia Vásquez-Lavado is a trailblazer of our generation, with a story that's worth telling. Now, the mountaineer and social entrepreneur has finally been given the opportunity, with a new film based on her memoir, In the Shadow of the Mountain, being confirmed.

If you're unfamiliar with Vásquez-Lavado, one of her most significant milestones is becoming the first gay woman to complete the Seven Summits, a challenge that requires a climber to complete each of the highest mountains on the seven continents. Her success doesn't end there, however, also becoming the founder of the non-for-profit foundation Courageous Girls, which helps support survivors of sexual abuse and trafficking. As part of the organisation's mission, Courageous Girls also leads survivors on a guided trek to a Mt. Everest basecamp.

There's no official release date for the film as yet, but Variety has reported that Vásquez-Lavado's original memoir is scheduled to be published in 2022.

Marking her return to the big screen, actress and musician Selena Gomez has been confirmed to play the Peruvian mountaineer. Taking to Twitter, Vásquez-Lavado shared her excitement over the news that Gomez would be portraying her, exclaiming that she is "Honoured for the bold, talented, and brilliant @selenagomez to have the starring role and producer in the adaptation of In the Shadow of the Mountain."

 

Grateful for the @THR amazing news. Honored for the bold, talented, and brilliant @selenagomez to have the starring role and producer in the adaptation of In the Shadow of the Mountain; To the visionary #donnagiglioti; The talented #elginjames; and brilliance of Scott Budnick! 🙌🏽 https://t.co/U8NRC7UYZY

— Silvia Vasquez-Lavado (@silviavasla) November 12, 2020

As mentioned in Vásquez-Lavado's tweet, Gomez will also be producing the film under her July Moon Productions company. Working alongside her is Scott Budnick through his One Community banner and Academy Award winner Donna Gigliotti through her Tempesta Films company. As for the script, Little Birds', Elgin James will put his writing and directing skills on display once again for In the Shadow of the Mountain.

While the full details of the film are still limited, we have no doubt that Vásquez-Lavado's story will be powerful and permanent.

 

Image: Instagram