Elston Gunn's WEEKLY SCRIPT REPORT (Major Sales, Events, and other News!)
March 3rd, 2001
- Alec Berg, Jeff Schaeffer and Dave Mandel (uncredited rewriters on HOW THE GRINCH STOLE CHRISTMAS) will revisit Dr. Seuss again by writing THE CAT IN THE HAT for Imagine/Universal as a live-action vehicle for Tim Allen.
- Larry Ramin (THE LONELY WAR) will write an untitled epic adventure for Intermedia Films about the Winston Churchill's early years when he was ridiculed for warning Britain about Hitler. David Attwater is attached to direct for HBO Films and producer Ridley Scott.
- Propaganda Films and Wychwood Prods. have purchased Julie Bourne's period race car pic THE SILVER ARROWS for Simon West to direct. It's inspired by the true story of British race car driver Richard Seaman, who raced for a German team and won the German Grand Prix in 1938. It's set against a backdrop of espionage during the beginning of WWII.
- Comedian Steve Harvey and his wife, Mary Lee Harvey, have sold two comedy pitches: UNCLE RAY to Deep River Prods. and MISTAKEN IDENTITY to Warner Bros. Steve Harvey will star while his wife produces. RAY is about a corporate executive who has to watch his boss's kid during a long weekend. IDENTITY is a about a stockbroker and an insurance agent who are in the same court on the same day for divorce proceedings. Later, the two crash their cars, discuss their troubles over drinks and then get caught in a mob/police chase after a woman mistakes them for detectives.
- Writer/actor Todd Graff will write EPSTEIN, which will detail the last year of Beatle's manager Brian Epstein's life. Tom Sternberg, Simon Halfon and Jude Law will produce, with the latter playing Epstein.
- Disney has Mark Perez (upcoming THE COUNTRY BEARS) writing two screenplays for the studio in a deal that could be worth in the mid-seven figures. Perez has also scripted FRANK MCCLUSKY for Disney and THE PARTY PROFESSIONAL for Universal.
- Icon Prods. picked up the thriller script THE DEVIL'S KISS by Mark L. Smith, about a retiring sheriff who sticks around to help his inexperienced replacement solve a series of ghastly murders.
- Escape Artists has hired writer Chris Morgan to pen THE BERMUDA TRIANGLE, about a fiber-optic crew that finds out what's at the bottom of the Bermuda Triangle during a deep-sea cable placement.
- Revolution grabbed the comedy pitch JOINT CUSTODY from Randy Feldman (METRO) as a possible starring vehicle for Adam Sandler. It's about a guy who cannot choose between two women in his life, so they take the decision away from him and come up with a plan of what to do with him.
- Lisa Addario and Joey Syracuse's UNTITLED DARK ROMANTIC COMEDY has landed at Universal. It tells the story of a self-help guru who hides his past of relationships gone bad in order to keep business up. However, a female reporter discovers and reveals the truth. The writing duo have set up MAI, THE PSYCHIC GIRL at Columbia; THE IT GIRL at Paramount and WONDERGIRL at Shooting Gallery.
- Molly McAlpine sold her romantic comedy script NUMBER ONE GIRL to Intermedia Films for Mark Johnson to produce. It's about a daughter whose widowed father falls for her sorority sister/enemy.
- Kinowelt USA picked up the rights to Anthony Jaswinski's (upcoming WESTWARD) pitch SOLDIERS OF FORTUNE, about a group of high school students searching for a legendary fortune in New York City.
A good group of projects here, in my opinion. The Winston Churchill script, THE SILVER ARROWS, THE DEVIL'S KISS, THE BERMUDA TRIANGLE all sound like they could be the foundation of some good features. EPSTEIN is my pick of the week, merely because I'm a Beatles fan and I think Epstein's story will make an interesting film. It's Jude Law's pet project and if his passion equals his talent on this pic, we should have a gem.
-- Elston Gunn
(Sources: The Hollywood Reporter, Variety)
- Larry Ramin (THE LONELY WAR) will write an untitled epic adventure for Intermedia Films about the Winston Churchill's early years when he was ridiculed for warning Britain about Hitler. David Attwater is attached to direct for HBO Films and producer Ridley Scott.
- Propaganda Films and Wychwood Prods. have purchased Julie Bourne's period race car pic THE SILVER ARROWS for Simon West to direct. It's inspired by the true story of British race car driver Richard Seaman, who raced for a German team and won the German Grand Prix in 1938. It's set against a backdrop of espionage during the beginning of WWII.
- Comedian Steve Harvey and his wife, Mary Lee Harvey, have sold two comedy pitches: UNCLE RAY to Deep River Prods. and MISTAKEN IDENTITY to Warner Bros. Steve Harvey will star while his wife produces. RAY is about a corporate executive who has to watch his boss's kid during a long weekend. IDENTITY is a about a stockbroker and an insurance agent who are in the same court on the same day for divorce proceedings. Later, the two crash their cars, discuss their troubles over drinks and then get caught in a mob/police chase after a woman mistakes them for detectives.
- Writer/actor Todd Graff will write EPSTEIN, which will detail the last year of Beatle's manager Brian Epstein's life. Tom Sternberg, Simon Halfon and Jude Law will produce, with the latter playing Epstein.
- Disney has Mark Perez (upcoming THE COUNTRY BEARS) writing two screenplays for the studio in a deal that could be worth in the mid-seven figures. Perez has also scripted FRANK MCCLUSKY for Disney and THE PARTY PROFESSIONAL for Universal.
- Icon Prods. picked up the thriller script THE DEVIL'S KISS by Mark L. Smith, about a retiring sheriff who sticks around to help his inexperienced replacement solve a series of ghastly murders.
- Escape Artists has hired writer Chris Morgan to pen THE BERMUDA TRIANGLE, about a fiber-optic crew that finds out what's at the bottom of the Bermuda Triangle during a deep-sea cable placement.
- Revolution grabbed the comedy pitch JOINT CUSTODY from Randy Feldman (METRO) as a possible starring vehicle for Adam Sandler. It's about a guy who cannot choose between two women in his life, so they take the decision away from him and come up with a plan of what to do with him.
- Lisa Addario and Joey Syracuse's UNTITLED DARK ROMANTIC COMEDY has landed at Universal. It tells the story of a self-help guru who hides his past of relationships gone bad in order to keep business up. However, a female reporter discovers and reveals the truth. The writing duo have set up MAI, THE PSYCHIC GIRL at Columbia; THE IT GIRL at Paramount and WONDERGIRL at Shooting Gallery.
- Molly McAlpine sold her romantic comedy script NUMBER ONE GIRL to Intermedia Films for Mark Johnson to produce. It's about a daughter whose widowed father falls for her sorority sister/enemy.
- Kinowelt USA picked up the rights to Anthony Jaswinski's (upcoming WESTWARD) pitch SOLDIERS OF FORTUNE, about a group of high school students searching for a legendary fortune in New York City.
A good group of projects here, in my opinion. The Winston Churchill script, THE SILVER ARROWS, THE DEVIL'S KISS, THE BERMUDA TRIANGLE all sound like they could be the foundation of some good features. EPSTEIN is my pick of the week, merely because I'm a Beatles fan and I think Epstein's story will make an interesting film. It's Jude Law's pet project and if his passion equals his talent on this pic, we should have a gem.
-- Elston Gunn
(Sources: The Hollywood Reporter, Variety)
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