Here are some of the most notable script sales from August 2020:
– Lionsgate and 87eleven have picked up Michael Finch and Alex Litvak’s adventure/fantasy spec Arcana.
– DUST, Black Label Media, and Davis Entertainment have tapped Derek Kolstad to adapt the Korean short film The Time Agent by Jude Chun.
– Village Roadshow optioned the thriller spec The Prize, written by Chris Sparling. Espen Sandberg is attached to direct.
– Lionsgate and 21 Laps Entertainment acquired Kevin Couglin and Ryan Grassby’s horror spec Mother Land in a competitive auction.
– Scott Beck and Bryan Woods will write and direct the sci-fi/thriller 65 for Raimi Productions. Sam Raimi will produce along with Beck and Woods, and Adam Driver will star.
– STX Entertainment, Zero Gravity, and Sculptor Media have tapped Joe Carnahan to rewrite the action/thriller Copshop from Kurt McLeod’s previous draft, based on a story by McLeod and Mark Williams. Carnahan will also direct, and Gerard Butler is set to star and produce.
– In news from across the Atlantic: Wee Buns, Ripple World Pictures, and Northern Ireland Screen will produce The Last Rifleman, written by Kevin Fitzpatrick and based on the true story of Artie Crawford. Pierce Brosnan will star, and Terry Loane will direct.
– Disney is giving The Haunted Mansion a remake and/or reboot (we’re not quite sure on the difference between the two anymore, tbh). Katie Dippold will provide the script.
– Universal has picked up an untitled pitch from Natalie Morales and Cyrina Fiallo. The comedy follows a Cuban-American woman who returns to her overbearing family for a baptism, a quinceañera, a wedding, and a funeral. Phil Lord and Chris Miller will produce.
– The Bedford Falls Company and Endeavor Content have picked up The Making Of, written by Ed Zwick and Marshall Herskovitz. The rom-com will star Richard Gere, Diane Keaton, Blake Lively, and Lin-Manuel Miranda, and Zwick will produce/direct as well.
– And in the month’s vaguest news: Sony, Marvel Studios, and Pascal Pictures have tapped Olivia Wilde and Katie Silberman to script a movie based on an as-of-yet-unannounced character in the Spider-Man universal. Wilde will direct.
– Aeysha Carr will script a remake of Planes, Trains & Automobiles for Paramount Pictures, HartBeat Productions, and Westbrook Studios. The original movie was written and directed by John Hughes. Will Smith and Kevin hart will produce and star.
– Sarah Ruhl will script an English-language remake of Hirokazu Koreeda’s 2013 Japanese film Like Father Like Son for Focus Features and Wink Productions. Lulu Wang will produce/direct.
– TJ Fixman will script Spyglass Media Group and Atomic Monster’s Knight Rider adaptation. The 80’s series was originally created by Glen A. Larson.
Adaptations currently in development can be found here on Book Pipeline.