Hollywood is starting to feel the affects of Crazy Rich Asians’ amazing box-office performance, and several projects with Asian-American or Polynesian leads were picked up in the second half of August. (It’s long overdue, but hey, we’ll take it.) Seven Bucks Entertainment, Flynn Picture Company, ImageMovers are teaming to produce The King, with New Line Cinema distributing. Written by Randall Wallace, the spec is a biopic of King Kamehameha, who was the first to unite the Hawaiian Islands. Dwayne Johnson is set to star, Robert Zemeckis to direct, and both will produce. New Line also picked up Singles Day, a romantic comedy spec written by Lillian Yu. The plot is mostly under wraps, but it’s based on a Chinese holiday described as the anti–Valentine’s Day in which singles celebrate being unattached. And finally, Elyse Hollander’s untitled music spec found a home at Fox 2000. The story follows an Asian American college student who becomes a top competitor on a South Korean k-pop competition show.
Other script sales:
– And of course, Crazy Rich Asians is getting its sequel. Peter Chiarelli and Adele Lim are returning to adapt Kevin Kwan’s novel, and Jon M. Chu is returning to direct. (And you’ve seen Crazy Rich Asians, right? If not, you should really get on that.)
– Jon Silberman and Josh Silberman have been tapped to write Coyote Vs. Acme for Warner Bros. Animation. It will be centered on the perpetually ill-fated Wile E. Coyote. Chris McKay (The LEGO Movie) will produce.
– Natalie Portman is set to star in and direct an untitled script written by Katie Robbins. The true story follows dueling sisters Esther Friedman and Pauline Friedman, who are perhaps best known as Ann Landers and Dear Abby.
– Elevation Pictures picked up the horror script Random Acts of Violence, adapted by Jay Baruchel and Jesse Chabot from Jimmy Palmiotti and Justin Gray’s graphic novel. Baruchel is set to direct.
– Central Films and Ross Katz Productions are teaming up for writer-director Oliver Stone’s drama White Lies. Benicio del Toro will star.
– Oren Uziel will script Supergirl for Warner Bros. and DC Entertainment.