Pitt wins battle for World War Z rights

Brad Pitt has beaten Leonardo DiCaprio in a bidding war for the film rights to zombie book World War Z.

Brad Pitt's production company Plan B and studio Paramount Pictures competed with Leonardo DiCaprio's firm Applan Way, backed by Warner Bros.

Max Brooks's novel is set 10 years after a global zombie epidemic and is due to be published this autumn. It follows the success of his 2003 book Zombie Survival Guide.