It was hailed as the most exciting American play to open on Broadway in years, and later this month National Theatre audiences will see what the fuss was all about. Next up will be the movie, after the Weinstein Company yesterday announced it had bought the film and distribution rights for August: Osage County.

The Tracy Letts play electrified New York when it opened at the Imperial Theatre last December. For more than three hours, it follows the lives of an Oklahoma family in emotional meltdown. The New York Times warned readers they would leave feeling emotionally wrung and exhausted from laughing, adding: "Watching it is like sitting at home on a rainy night, greedily devouring two, three, four episodes of your favorite series in a row on DVR or DVD."

Harvey Weinstein said: "This is such an extraordinary piece of material, which comes along once in a great while. I was blown away by Tracy's play and believe our movie will likewise have an incredible resonance with anyone who has ever been part of a family."

August: Osage County, winner of a Tony for best play and Pulitzer for best drama, began life as a Steppenwolf theatre production in Chicago and opens in London on November 26, with the original cast, for an eight-week run. The National Theatre website is already asking the public to decide which emotionally bruised or bruising member of the Weston family they identify with.

Producers hope to have the movie out by 2011.