Hollywood Scripts in Development

Here's the latest news on feature scripts in development around town...

Actor Will Smith with produce and likely star in the spec script The City that Sailed by Andrew Niccol (The Truman Show and The Terminal). It's a whimsical tale of how a young girl's wish to be with her magician father in New York fuels the magic that causes Manhattan to break off from the continent and drift across the Atlantic to bring him home to England.

Director Francis Lawrence (I Am Legend) is in talks to helm The City That Sailed for Fox. Lawrence is also developing a project entitled Water for Elephants, a historical novel about an orphaned boy who joins the circus by best-selling author Sara Gruen.

A feature adaptation of 80s ABC police drama T.J. Hooker is officially in development now at David Foster Productions based on an action-comedy script written by Brent Maddock. Here's a mini-sode to refresh your memory, starring a buff young William Shatner.



Relativity Media is developing a comedy called MacGruber based on the Saturday Night Live series of sketches parodying the 80s TV show McGyver. Will Forte and Kristin Wiig from the SNL series will reprise their roles. Ryan Phillipe and Val Kilmer are in talks to star in the Paramount Picture.



Mandate Pictures is also developing You're A Miserable Excuse for a Hero!, the first book in a new series called "Just Make a Choice" by comedian Bob Powers.

Meanwhile, veteran writer/director Gary Marshall began shooting the romantic comedy Valentine's Day by Abby Kohn & Marc Silverstein (He's Just Not That Into You) for New Line Cinema this week. An all-star ensemble cast of 10 Angelinos who serendipitously meet on the February holiday.

And the best-selling novel A Dog Named Christmas by Greg Kincaid also began shooting yesterday. One hit dog movie deserves another I guess. Marley & Me has only been out on DVD a little over 90 days. The slate is obviously taking its cue from the box office, where comedy, fantasy and action continue topping the charts.

Postcards from the edge

My sister sent me a photo of her new bathtub outside the farmhouse she and her husband are building in the Texas hill country. It's one of the more timely photos I've seen but she's shy and doesn't want it on the blog so I took it down. Even so, many of us are facing hard times and getting back to basics by leaving the city to live on a farm is a good seed idea for a feature or TV show.


Twelve years ago the movie For Richer For Poorer with Tim Allen and Kirstie Allie dabbled in the arena only they were scammers hiding from the IRS and posing as Amish farmers in Pennsylvania. The script was kind of lame but the concept is more timely than ever. There are plenty of former Wall Street brokers and real estate hustlers out there. It's not hard to imagine one or more of them trying to rehabilitate bank-owned properties in the southwest.

Remember the old CBS TV series Green Acres? Maybe it's time for an updated remake or a feature based on a similar premise. The knee-jerk response would be Paris Hilton trying to make it as a farmer's wife but then we've already had that haven't we? How about a comic actress who can pull in the young male audience in what is essentially a chick flick? Someone like maybe Anna Faris?


When I was in Austin I met a man who was building a "green" house in the country. A great idea, very "in" and cutting edge but a tough go because he was doing it on a shoestring budget. He and his young wife bought some land about 40 miles south west of Austin and started raising their ambitious DIY dream house.

They used well water and solar power for their utilities. They're officially "off-the-grid" but there have been a lot of problems in construction due to unexpected expense. downturn in the economy and lack of funds. She got pregnant in the meantime and, last I heard, left him to go live with her mother in a "civilized" home.

Sometimes the truth is tragic but the concept may well be worth developing. Not long ago a reality show contacted me on a similar idea. They're in the process of casting a series based on real people in a real recession and what they're doing to survive. They'll have their pick of contestants but I think I'd rather see a larger-than-life, comedy version.

Michael's Memorial

A few clips from today's service at the Staples Center...

Michael's last dance

Just released footage of Michael Jackson rehearsing at the Staples Center in L.A. just two days before his death. I don't know how to feel about it but I DO know I couldn't resist watching him alive, in his element, for the last time.

Viva la independents

On the eve of our nation's Independence Day weekend, I'd like to devote a few moments to give thanks for our right to freedom of speech and the closely associated freedom of the press and access to information. Here are a few clips meant to enlighten and entertain on these subjects even though they are skewed by my own opinions.

The first clip, from Martin Kaplan of the Norman Lear Center at USC Annenberg School for Communication was recorded during the writers strike last year to promote education on the big media and the new age of the FCC, Federal Communications Commission.





This next clip is an in-depth report from respected PBS journalist Bill Moyers, recorded in November 2007. Though dated, it still serves as relevant backstory on the demise of something we used to call equal access and the rise of media conglomerates.





The last one I found on the Independent Film and Television Alliance. They have produced several of their own but I believe this one was produced by a group associated with the Consumers Union.





Big media is after control of the Internet now. That's what Net Neutrality is all about. Fortunately, we have a new FCC Chairman (Julius Genachowski) and President Obama has vowed to have a more transparent government. Let's hope this is true and that the president having an buddy in control of regulating the airwaves and big media is a good thing.

For more information go to Electronic Frontier Foundation, Net Neutrality, the IFTA and one of their dedicated sites called Fight for Independents where you can sign a petition written to the Chairman of theFCC asking to limit big media's reach so the voices of independent film & TV can be heard.

Happy Independence Day!

Obama's eligibility to be president in question

The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to hear evidence that President Barak Obama's American citizenship is in question, which puts his eligibility to be president on shaky ground. Kind of begs the question. What else is he hiding?

Normally I'm not a news hound (unless it has to do with film) but a friend of mine who is very astute on political matters sent this to me yesterday. This is very juicy stuff and you won't find your local news channel carrying the coverage.

AP- WASHINGTON D.C. - In a move certain to fuel the debate over Obama's
> qualifications for the presidency, the group Americans for Freedom of
> Information has Released copies of President Obama's college transcripts
> from Occidental College Released today, the transcript indicates that
> Obama, under the name Barry Soetoro, received financial aid as a
> foreign student from Indonesia as an undergraduate at the school.
> The transcript was released by Occidental College in compliance with a
> court order in a suit brought by the group in the Superior Court of
> California. The transcript shows that Obama (Soetoro) applied for
> financial aid and was awarded a fellowship for foreign students from the
> Fulbright Foundation Scholarship program. To qualify, for
> the scholarship, a student must claim foreign citizenship. This
> document would seem to provide the smoking gun that many of Obama's
> detractors have been seeking.
>
> Along with the evidence that he was first born in Kenya and there is
no record of him ever applying for US citizenship, this is
> looking pretty grim. The news has created a firestorm at the White
> House as the release casts increasing doubt about Obama's legitimacy and
> qualification to serve as president. When reached for comment in London,
> where he has been in meetings with British Prime Minister Gordon Brown,
> Obama smiled but refused comment on the issue.
>
> Britain 's Daily Mail also carried the story in a front-page article titled, Obama
> Eligibility Questioned leading some to speculate that the story may
> overshadow economic issues on Obama's first official visit to the U.K.
>
> In a related matter, under growing pressure from several groups,
> Justice Antonin Scalia announced that the Supreme Court agreed
> on Tuesday to hear arguments concerning Obama's legal eligibility to
> serve as President in a case brought by Leo Donofrio of New Jersey .
> This lawsuit claims Obama's dual citizenship disqualified him from
> serving as president. Donofrio's case is just one of 18 suits brought by
> citizens demanding proof of Obama's citizenship or qualification to
> serve as president.
>
> Gary Kreep of the United States Justice Foundation has released
> the results of their investigation of Obama's campaign spending.
> This study estimates that Obama has spent upwards of $950,000
> in campaign funds in the past year with eleven law firms in 12 states
> for legal resources to block disclosure of any of his personal
> records. Mr. Kreep indicated that the investigation is still ongoing
> but that the final report will be provided to the U.S. Attorney General,
> Eric Holder. Mr. Holder has refused to comment on the matter.


Remember this viral video from last year? Hard not to like the guy.



Is everyone too busy worrying about Michael Jackson's embattled estate and impending memorial to give this story the attention it deserves? Or are there gatekeepers in place exercising their power over the mainstream media? We'll see how long it takes for this to surface on the networks. Personally, I'm not holding my breath.

All this information is in public domain (or it soon will be thanks to the Freedom of Information Act) so here's a meaty conspiracy theory for all you scribes out there. It's going to be hard to put a pretty spin on this one.

The Weekend Ahead

So far, Transformers 2: Revenge of the Fallen has raked in $419 million worldwide in its first week. An awesome second to last year's mega hit The Dark Knight. More evidence, as far as I'm concerned, that the public wants big escapist films with larger-than-life villains and heroes.

This is good to know if you're thinking about writing a script and selling it to Hollywood. The coming weekend is right on target with Michael Mann's crime drama Public Enemies opening wide in the U.S. against the Fox animated flick Ice Age 3. Here's a sneak peak at both of those films (both a little different than the official trailers).

PUBLIC ENEMIES



ICE AGE 3



Hard to imagine two more opposite films. If you time it right you can take the kids to see Ice Age and watch Public Enemies with your spouse or significant other.

Meanwhile, nothing earth shaking to report in terms of my taking Hollywood by storm yet...I'll keep you posted.