Writing Partners Inks Groundbreaking Deal With Fox
Posted on September 10, 2007
In a screenwriting first, nine writers (calling themselves Writing Partners) have banded together to strike a groundbreaking deal with 20th Century Fox. The writers get enhanced creative control in return for providing "a steady influx of original material." Members of the group include Michael Brandt, Derek Haas and Michael Arndt.
Crisis talks are ongoing between the Writers Guild of America and the studios ahead of possible strike action in November. Meanwhile two similar writers' initiatives - the Writers Co-Op and the 139 Inc - were launched earlier this year. However neither of those deals went as far as the Writing Partners agreement. Under the terms of the deal, each of the nine writers - or each screenwriting pair - must provide Fox with an original screenplay within the next four years in return for a $300,000 (£150,000) advance fee. While the amount is lower than the fee which an A-list writer would ordinarily expect to receive, things only get better if the film gets made.The studio likes the deal because it gets out of the "pay or play" situation where the studio pays the script fees whether or not the film ever gets made. The writers like the deal because of the potential upside and the increase in control over the scripts. Will this become the new trend for screenwriting deals? It will be interesting to see how it works out.In this case the writer not only receives the full lucrative fee but "back end" profit participation that amounts to 2.5% of ticket sales. These terms in particular have caused a stir in Tinseltown given Fox's reputation for fiscal conservatism.
The studio cannot hire new writers for script polishes without the say-so of the original writer, who retains a strong influence on the choice of directors and actors. If the film does not get made, the script reverts to the writer and the full fee remains unpaid.