Twentieth Century Fox buys spec comedy “From Mia With Love” from writers Seth Grahame-Smith, David Katzenberg, Bryan Shukoff & Kevin Chesley. Per Deadline:
Three guys so desperate to lose their virginity order up a Russian mail-order bride, figuring they can send her back. She is smoking hot but arrives with baggage and no plans to bed the lads, though she helps the trio become more suitable mating material.
That’s a clean high concept. Sounds like a John Hughes movie: Weird Science meets Green Card.
Writers are repped by WME.
Grahame-Smith is the writer of “Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter.”
Katzenberg, who will direct this project, is the son of DreamWorks principal Jeffrey Katzenberg.
By my count, this is the 34th spec script to sell this year.
The 34th spec script didn’t sell in 2010 until August 17, so sales are up significantly this year.
This is great! Seems like only yesterday all I heard was "don't bother with specs, they don't sell anymore."
Matt, it goes beyond specs. Buyers are busy in Cannes right now, best number of transactions in years. In Hwood, lots of pitch sales and other acquisitions. OWA market very busy. Plus I'm prepping a post about how a spec script's value goes well beyond whether it sells or not. Should be posting that next week.
But specifically to your point: The spec market is very strong this year.
Build it they will come. Write it they will buy (wishful thinking).
This is very similar to the B-story line in the "American Dad" episode "Of Ice and Men."
Not that there's anything wrong with that…
Wow Z –
I thought of that episode too when I read this. Doesn't sound like a very big idea.