Marvel's Civil War Begins
Captain America: Civil War premieres in theaters today, written by Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely, based upon the comic book by Mark Millar, and directed by Anthony and Joe Russo.
Writers On Instagram: Josh Boone Shares the Cover Page of Interview with a Vampire
Josh Boone, director of The Fault in Our Stars and writer/director of Stuck in Love, shared a shot of the cover page of his latest work, a new adaptation of Interview with the Vampire. Co-written with Jill Killington, the script draws its story from two Anne Rice novels, Interview with the Vampire and The Vampire Lestat.
Deadline: Academy Nicholl Fellowship in Screenwriting
The deadline for the Academy Nicholl Fellowship in screenwriting is upon us. Submissions close on May 2nd.
Instructions on how to apply can be found on the AMPAS website.
Max Landis Explains How The Movie Industry Works
In defense of Scarlett Johansson's casting in Ghost in the Shell, writer Max Landis (Chronicle, American Ultra, Victor Frankenstein) posted a YouTube video to explain how Hollywood works.
Writers On Twitter: J.K. Rowling Reveals Her Favorite Harry Potter Character (Other Than Harry)
After writing seven Harry Potter novels, J.K. Rowling has revealed her favorite character in the series... next to Harry himself.
Dumbledore. https://t.co/pY9HKUHiaB
— J.K. Rowling (@jk_rowling) April 11, 2016
Subway Reading
Who knew that watching people watching someone read could be so much fun?
Trailer: Rogue One: A Star Wars Story
The teaser trailer for Rogue One: A Star Wars Story has just been released this morning and it looks great.
While I was concerned when they first announced this, I am completely assured but this preview that the Star Wars stand-alone films are on the right track.
Trailer: The BFG
Disney and Steven Spielberg have brought Roald Dahl's classic children's tale to life for the big screen.
The BFG opens in theaters on July 1, 2016.
100 Greatest One-Liners: Before The Kill
No kill on screen is fully satisfying unless you get that last zinger in before you pull the trigger. Burger Fiction has put together a supercut of their take on the one hundred best one-liners right before the kill.
Writers on Twitter: Etan Cohen Comes to a Sad Realization
Etan Cohen, screenwriter of Tropic Thunder, Men in Black 3, and Get Hard, realizes he might have envisioned the world of Idiocracy a little too well.
I never expected #idiocracy to become a documentary.
— Etan Cohen (@etanjc) February 24, 2016
This Day in Screenwriting History: February 20, 1981
On this day in 1981, Star Wars creator George Lucas finished the first draft of Revenge of the Jedi, later to be retitled Return of the Jedi.
New On Blu: Trumbo
New this week from Universal is Trumbo, the story of blacklisted screenwriter and two-time Academy Award winner Dalton Trumbo, written by John McNamara based on a book by Bruce Cook, directed by Jat Roach, and starring Bryan Cranston, Diane Lane, and Helen Mirren.
"In 1947, Dalton Trumbo (Bryan Cranston) was Hollywood's top screenwriter until he and other artists were jailed and blacklisted for their political beliefs. Trumbo (directed by Jay Roach) recounts how Dalton used words and wit to win two Academy Awards and expose the absurdity and injustice of the blacklist, which entangled everyone from gossip columnist Hedda Hopper (Helen Mirren) to John Wayne, Kirk Douglas and Otto Preminger."
Trumbo is available now on Blu-ray, DVD, and Amazon Video.
Writers on Twitter: Stephen King Gets Political
Stephen King sums up just how horrifying the 2016 Presidential campaign has become.
The stupidest, ugliest Presidential campaign in my entire life: HOUSE OF CARDS meets SHARKNADO.
— Stephen King (@StephenKing) February 15, 2016
And The 2016 Oscar Nominees Are...
Just announced this morning by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, these are the writing nominees for the 2016 Academy Awards:
WRITING - ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
Bridge of Spies - written by Matt Charman and Ethan Coen & Joel Coen
Ex Machina - written by Alex Garland
Inside Out - screenplay by Pete Docter, Meg Lefauve, and Josh Cooley, from a story Pete Docter and Ronnie del Carmen
Spotlight - written by Josh Singer and Tom McKay
Straight Outta Compton - Jonathan Herman and Andrea Berloff, from a story by S. Leigh Savage & Alan Wenkus and Andrea Berloff
WRITING - ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
The Big Short
Brooklyn - screenplay by Nick Hornby
Carol - screenplay by Phyllis Nagy
The Martian - screenplay by Drew Goddard
Room - screenplay by Emma Donoghue
Fifty Years Ago Today...
Batman premiered on ABC on January 12, 1966.
Created by William dozier and Lorenzo Semple Jr., based on Bob Kane and Bill Finger's original character, Batman starred Adam and Burt Ward as the Caped Crusader and Robin. Key writers for the show included Semple, Stanley Ralph Ross, Charles Hoffman, and Stanford Sherman.
Trailer: The Hateful Eight
New from The Weinstein Company is the full trailer for The Hateful Eight, written and directed by Quentin Tarantino, and starring Kurt Russell, Samuel L. Jackson, Channing Tatum, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Walter Goggins, Tim Roth, Zoe Bell, Michael Madsen, and Bruce Dern.
"In THE HATEFUL EIGHT, set six or eight or twelve years after the Civil War, a stagecoach hurtles through the wintry Wyoming landscape. The passengers, bounty hunter John Ruth (Russell) and his fugitive Daisy Domergue (Leigh), race towards the town of Red Rock where Ruth, known in these parts as “The Hangman,” will bring Domergue to justice. Along the road, they encounter two strangers: Major Marquis Warren (Jackson), a black former union soldier turned infamous bounty hunter, and Chris Mannix (Goggins), a southern renegade who claims to be the town’s new Sheriff. Losing their lead on the blizzard, Ruth, Domergue, Warren and Mannix seek refuge at Minnie's Haberdashery, a stagecoach stopover on a mountain pass. When they arrive at Minnie’s, they are greeted not by the proprietor but by four unfamiliar faces. Bob (Bichir), who’s taking care of Minnie’s while she’s visiting her mother, is holed up with Oswaldo Mobray (Roth), the hangman of Red Rock, cow-puncher Joe Gage (Madsen), and Confederate General Sanford Smithers (Dern). As the storm overtakes the mountainside stopover, our eight travelers come to learn they may not make it to Red Rock after all…"
The Hateful Eight opens in select theaters on December 25, 2015, and in wide release on January 8, 2015.
Deadline: Spotlight Screenplay Competition Closes On October 31st
If you've got something ready to go, and you want a shot at the $5,000 Grand Prize in the Writers Store's Spotlight Screenplay Competition, submit it now because the extended deadline is tomorrow, October 31st.
The full Grand Prize package includes a $5,000 Cash Prize, meetings with industry professional, a Screenplay Pitch Clinic with ScriptXpert Story Coach, exposure to over 200 industry professionals, featured announcement in Script Magazine, and a special Invitation into the ISA Development Program.
Enter here: Spotlight Screenplay Competition
Star Wars: The Force Awakens Official Poster Revealed
The official theatrical poster for Star Wars: The Force Awakens has finally been revealed.
Screenwriter Abi Morgan on Suffragette
GoldDerby chats with screenwriter Abi Morgan (Shame, The Iron Lady) about her new film Suffragette.
Suffragette was written by Abi Morgan, directed by Sarah Gavron, and stars Helena Bonham Carter, Carey Mulligan, and Meryl Streep. It opens in theaters on October 23, 2015.
The Story of Dalton Trumbo Comes to the Big Screen
Bleacher Street, along with ShivHans Pictures and Groundswell Productions, is bringing the story of Hollywood screenwriter Dalton Trumbo to theaters this November in TRUMBO.
"The successful career of 1940s screenwriter Dalton Trumbo (Bryan Cranston) comes to a crushing end when he and other Hollywood figures are blacklisted for their political beliefs. TRUMBO (directed by Jay Roach) tells the story of his fight against the U.S. government and studio bosses in a war over words and freedom, which entangled everyone in Hollywood from Hedda Hopper (Helen Mirren) and John Wayne to Kirk Douglas and Otto Preminger."
Dalton Trumbo wrote over sixty films including Spartacus, Papillon, Thirsty Seconds Over Tokyo, Johnny Got His Gun, A Guy Named Joe, Five Came Back, Roman Holiday, and Exodus.
TRUMBO was based on the book by Bruce Cook, with a screenplay by John McNamara, directed by Jay Roach, and stars Bryan Cranston, Elle Fanning, Diane Lane, Helen Mirren, Alan Tudyk, John Goodman, Louis C.K., and Adawale Akinnouye Agbage.
TRUMBO will be released in theaters on November 6, 2015.