<P> Actor Ron Rifkin reads the text for the audiobook edition . </P> <P> The Lyric Opera of Kansas City and the Minnesota Opera co-commissioned and premiered a new opera by Susan Kander based on the novel . It was presented in Kansas City in January and Minneapolis on 27--29 April 2012, and was webcast on 18 May 2012 . </P> <P> Jeff Bridges has said he had wanted to make the film for nearly 20 years, and originally wanted to direct it with his father Lloyd Bridges in the title role . The elder Bridges' 1998 death cancelled that plan and the film languished in development hell for another 15 years . Warner Bros. bought the rights in 2007 and the film adaptation was finally given the green light in December 2012 . Jeff Bridges plays the title character with Brenton Thwaites in the role of Jonas . Meryl Streep, Katie Holmes, Odeya Rush, Cameron Monaghan, Alexander Skarsgård and Taylor Swift round out the rest of the main cast . It was released in North America on August 15, 2014 . </P>

Where did the new children's names come from in the giver