Sailing girl: Who should play her in the inevitable movie?

Image Credit: Jaco Marais/Gallo Images/Getty Images; Theo Wargo/WireImage.comAs an answer to the infrequently asked question, “Why don’t people ever try to sail across the globe for hundreds of days in a tiny boat anymore?” 16-year-old Abby Sunderland went missing somewhere in the Indian Ocean on Thursday while in the middle of an attempt to break the record for the youngest person to go around the world in a sailboat. But don’t fret, the young circumnavigator, who was clearly trying to be gellin’ like Magellan, was found safe and sound. Which means the following attempt to cast the movie version of her journey will be in good taste. Yay!

Emma Roberts might be a good pick, or maybe even Mia Wasikowska, but reading Abby’s blog, it’s clear that she’s a smart, well-spoken girl, so it’s possible that the movie could use someone a little more, well, precocious. And there’s no one more precocious in Hollywood now than Dakota Fanning, who’s also just about the right age. Whoever it is, the actress should be able to hold her own, considering there probably won’t be that many supporting actors. And if Hollywood wants to kill two birds with one stone, they could combine two stories and have Abby get rescued by Balloon Boy, who just happened to be floating by.

Any ideas for possible casting? If they do make a movie, should Wilson Q. Volleyball make a cameo appearance?