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Mr. Stewart, the stand-up satirist and “Daily Show” host, said on Tuesday that he would direct his first movie, a drama called “Rosewater,” from a screenplay that he wrote.

The movie — which will require a 12-week absence from his duties on “The Daily Show” — is an adaptation of the 2011 book “Then They Came for Me: A Family’s Story of Love, Captivity and Survival,” by Maziar Bahari and Aimee Molloy.

“I am a television person who is accustomed to having a thought at 10 a.m. and having it out there at 6:30 p.m. and moving on, so this is a little scary, yes,” Mr. Stewart said by telephone.

“Rosewater” will cost an estimated $30 million to $40 million to make, with financing coming from Gigi Pritzker’s Odd Lot Entertainment. Scott Rudin; Ms. Pritzker, the Hyatt heiress; and Mr. Stewart are producing the film. Casting is still in its early stages; 60 to 80 people will ultimately be involved, and shooting could begin overseas as soon as June.

John Oliver, a regular contributor to the program, on Comedy Central, will serve as guest host for eight weeks of new shows, and the four other weeks Mr. Stewart will be gone are expected to coincide with the show’s annual summer hiatus.

“One of the reasons we are in this business is to challenge ourselves,” Mr. Stewart said, “and I really connected to Maziar’s story. It’s a personal story but one with universal appeal about what it means to be free.”

Full Interview: The New York Times.

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