Halifax actress Ellen Page will star in a film called Whip It!, which will mark the directing debut of Drew Barrymore, Variety reported on Wednesday.

Canadian actor Ellen Page, shown in July 2007, will follow up her role in Juno with another role as an unconventional teen in Whip It!Canadian actor Ellen Page, shown in July 2007, will follow up her role in Juno with another role as an unconventional teen in Whip It!
(Associated Press)

Page, 20, is winning commercial and critical acclaim for her role as the whip-smart pregnant teen in Juno.

Variety reports Juno has so far earned $72 million at the box office.

Page is likely to accept another role before starting filming Whip It! this summer in Texas.

Her role is as a teen who defies her family's expectations that she will enter beauty contests and instead becomes involved in roller derby.

"I can't wait to kick ass on wheels!" she said in a statement.

Barrymore, star of Charlie's Angels and 50 First Dates, has a $10-million US budget to make the film with Mandate Pictures, which also backed Juno.

"I've been working toward the goal of directing my entire life," Barrymore said. "Whip It! is a story that really spoke to me."

The script is based on the book Derby Girl by Shauna Cross.