# You've written a bestselling novel. A movie producer wants to buy the movie rights. **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [March 20, 2015, 5:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youve-written-a-bestselling-novel-a-movie-producer-wants-to-buy-the-movie-rights/715515 "2015-03-20T17:57:32Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Trinopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/2bfe46/32.png) [@Trinopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trinopus)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2015, 8:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youve-written-a-bestselling-novel-a-movie-producer-wants-to-buy-the-movie-rights/715515/21 "2015-03-20T20:22:41Z")
> [@Arrendajo](#): > > Yeah, trying to micro-manage a Hollywood production is a loser’s game. Plus then if the movie turns out a dud you’ve got no one to blame but yourself. . . . Agreed. I know a little about writing, but I know jack squat about producing a movie. I’d probably do as much harm as good! I’ll let people who know what they’re doing make the movie, and I hope it does well at the box office, so I’ll have a better chance of selling another! Besides, from what I’ve heard, “retaining control” is pretty limited. I can’t go out there and tell the director what camera angles to use. A script is only a recipe; it’s the actual making (like baking) that ruins the final product. ---
**Author:** ![epbrown01](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7ba0ec/32.png) [@epbrown01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/epbrown01)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2015, 8:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youve-written-a-bestselling-novel-a-movie-producer-wants-to-buy-the-movie-rights/715515/22 "2015-03-20T20:35:24Z")
> [@Trinopus](#): > > Agreed. I know a little about writing, but I know jack squat about producing a movie. I’d probably do as much harm as good! This for me as well. I would take solace in the knowledge that everyone will say the book was better anyway. Of course, if they say the movie is really great, I’d worry - the best adaptations typically come from really bad books (Jaws, Bourne Identity…). ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2015, 8:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youve-written-a-bestselling-novel-a-movie-producer-wants-to-buy-the-movie-rights/715515/23 "2015-03-20T20:35:35Z")
I would negotiate for 4 million. ---
**Author:** ![Don\_t\_Panic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/don_t_panic/32/398_2.png) [@Don\_t\_Panic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Don_t_Panic)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2015, 8:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youve-written-a-bestselling-novel-a-movie-producer-wants-to-buy-the-movie-rights/715515/24 "2015-03-20T20:36:03Z")
> [@Trinopus](#): > > Agreed. I know a little about writing, but I know jack squat about producing a movie. I’d probably do as much harm as good! I’d imagine that my input on the movie set would be minimal in terms of actual creative or technical contributions, and more a whole lot of “Why did you do that for? Change it!” at regular intervals. I wonder how long they would let me get away with that before they just insisted that I take the full $2 million and booted me out of there. ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2015, 8:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youve-written-a-bestselling-novel-a-movie-producer-wants-to-buy-the-movie-rights/715515/25 "2015-03-20T20:39:25Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > Option #1. Take the money, then spend all my public time condemning the movie and what the producers are doing with it. This. I call it “Pulling an Alan” I’d also want the rights to revert to me a sensible amount of time after that first movie. ---
**Author:** ![Great\_Antibob](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e47c2d/32.png) [@Great\_Antibob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Great_Antibob)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2015, 8:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youve-written-a-bestselling-novel-a-movie-producer-wants-to-buy-the-movie-rights/715515/26 "2015-03-20T20:42:38Z")
> [@Trinopus](#): > > Agreed. I know a little about writing, but I know jack squat about producing a movie. I’d probably do as much harm as good! Agree with this. I’m with George RR Martin on this one. It’s like sending your kids off to school. You can go full on helicopter parent and micromanage elementary school teachers or you can accept that for all the input you’re allowed, you should let go a bit and let the experts do their thing. That said, picking the right schools and teachers in the first place is kind of important. ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2015, 9:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youve-written-a-bestselling-novel-a-movie-producer-wants-to-buy-the-movie-rights/715515/27 "2015-03-20T21:05:58Z")
I might have chosen the $2 million if the OP didn’t specify the producer was going to screw it up. If they remove a plot thread - fine, since that has to be done to make the movie less than 4 hours long. If they make the heroine a blonde instead of a brunette, also fine. If they say the aliens the heroes meet helped the Egyptians build the pyramids, not so fine. I wouldn’t bet on people going back to the book. In most cases far more people will see the movie. And often the book is forgotten. Who but a small contingent of geeks remembers that Robert Bloch wrote Psycho, especially today? ---
**Author:** ![HeyHomie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/heyhomie/32/207_2.png) [@HeyHomie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HeyHomie)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2015, 9:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youve-written-a-bestselling-novel-a-movie-producer-wants-to-buy-the-movie-rights/715515/28 "2015-03-20T21:06:13Z")
There’s very little I won’t do for a check with seven digits on it, and I am not kidding at all when I say that. Short of visiting harm upon someone else, or doing something that would cause me agonizing pain (I won’t do a BDSM session, for example), I’ll do _anything_ for the right price. And $2 million is well beyond what I’d consider the right price. If someone took my [Great American Novel](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=18180664&postcount=65) that explores themes of racial, cultural, and political divide among the American public, and turned it into a Michael Bay ejaculation full of explosions and titties, in exchange for $2 million, I would cry all the way to the bank. And anyone who wants to can call me a whore while I cash the check. But by day’s end, I’ll be on a beach in Cabo with a drink in one hand and a spliff in the other, while the haters will still be at the bank, grumbling about what a whore I am. ---
**Author:** ![John\_DiFool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_difool/32/19543_2.png) [@John\_DiFool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_DiFool)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2015, 9:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youve-written-a-bestselling-novel-a-movie-producer-wants-to-buy-the-movie-rights/715515/29 "2015-03-20T21:09:12Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > C: None of the above. If I’ve already written a bestselling novel, then realistically, I probably already have all the money I need (yes, I know writing isn’t all that lucrative, but then, I don’t need much), so I can afford to reject A. And I also reject B because there’s no way that any studio or producer would ever actually offer that deal, so if it looks like they are, that must mean that there’s one whopper of a loophole hidden in the fine print that’s going to burn me badly. What movie was made with the highest amount of control/input from the original author? 2001? ---
**Author:** ![amarinth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3be4f8/32.png) [@amarinth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amarinth)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2015, 9:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youve-written-a-bestselling-novel-a-movie-producer-wants-to-buy-the-movie-rights/715515/30 "2015-03-20T21:33:38Z")
Is it my work of genius? A book I’ve poured my heart and soul into that fully explores an important issue and lays out my personal life philosophy in the lives of characters that I love like my very own children? Or is it just a cool story that just happened to catch on? If it’s the former, I’m probably not selling at all. If it’s the latter, I still probably want some control over some things (I’d be concerned with whitewashing in casting), but I would probably be willing to give most of it up for the second mil. ---
**Author:** ![RandMcnally](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b782af/32.png) [@RandMcnally](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RandMcnally)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2015, 9:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youve-written-a-bestselling-novel-a-movie-producer-wants-to-buy-the-movie-rights/715515/31 "2015-03-20T21:33:44Z")
My goal in life is to one day be in a position where I can sell out. So yeah, 2 million please. ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2015, 10:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youve-written-a-bestselling-novel-a-movie-producer-wants-to-buy-the-movie-rights/715515/32 "2015-03-20T22:07:17Z")
> [@John\_DiFool](#): > > What movie was made with the highest amount of control/input from the original author? 2001? While Kubrick’s name wasn’t on the book, it was more of a collaboration, so I’m not sure it counts. I mentioned the Harry Potter films. The early ones in particular had a lot of input from here since they couldn’t put anything in which would screw up the plot lines of later books yet unpublished. The best choice would be a novelist/director, but neither John Sayles nor Nicholas Meyer seems to have directed any of their books. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2015, 10:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youve-written-a-bestselling-novel-a-movie-producer-wants-to-buy-the-movie-rights/715515/33 "2015-03-20T22:35:02Z")
I write professionally, and a pro gets all the money he can. If the movie is a terrible version of the book, I can cry all the way to the bank. > [@John Di Fool](#): > > What movie was made with the highest amount of control/input from the original author? 2001? **The Onion Field** had author Joseph Wambaugh producing and writing. If he didn’t like what the director was doing, his word was law. ---
**Author:** ![Shagnasty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9dc877/32.png) [@Shagnasty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shagnasty)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2015, 10:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youve-written-a-bestselling-novel-a-movie-producer-wants-to-buy-the-movie-rights/715515/34 "2015-03-20T22:47:34Z")
To put it in my terms, the choices are: 1. Take home a decent pot of change and do jack shit beyond that other than sit back and enjoy myself or 2. Accept half the amount I would have gotten for doing nothing so that I can work my ass off some more on a enormous clusterfuck of a group project? Sometimes other people’s questions really baffle we when they get auto-translated in my own head. What is the next poll, $100 or a swift kick to the nuts? ---
**Author:** ![iamthewalrus\_3](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/258eb7/32.png) [@iamthewalrus\_3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iamthewalrus_3)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2015, 10:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youve-written-a-bestselling-novel-a-movie-producer-wants-to-buy-the-movie-rights/715515/35 "2015-03-20T22:50:35Z")
I’m not a professional writer or a professional film producer. If I were talented enough to be a bestselling writer, the chances that I’m _also_ talented enough to produce an excellent film are low. The idea that the film would turn out better if only the writer had maintained creative control is a fantasy. The real tough question would be how much _less_ I’d be willing to accept to have someone else make the movie. ---
**Author:** ![Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mean_mr.mustard/32/3865_2.png) [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mean_Mr.Mustard)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2015, 10:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youve-written-a-bestselling-novel-a-movie-producer-wants-to-buy-the-movie-rights/715515/36 "2015-03-20T22:51:56Z")
If they’re paying me $2 million they can put Justin F’ing Bieber and Miley F’ing Cyrus in the starring roles and I won’t utter a discouraging word. mmm ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2015, 11:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youve-written-a-bestselling-novel-a-movie-producer-wants-to-buy-the-movie-rights/715515/37 "2015-03-20T23:02:38Z")
I agree with what **dracoi** said in the very first response. 98% of my reasoning is based on there-are-more-important-things-than-money type reasons. But the other 2% is based on the hope that a movie that was faithful to my novel would be more successful, critically and commercially, than one that betrayed its vision, and that that could have a significant effect on not only my future sales but also on my ability to sell the movie rights to any subsequent novels I might write. ---
**Author:** ![eschereal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschereal/32/18939_2.png) [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2015, 11:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youve-written-a-bestselling-novel-a-movie-producer-wants-to-buy-the-movie-rights/715515/38 "2015-03-20T23:09:46Z")
what about residuals? ---
**Author:** ![Great\_Antibob](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e47c2d/32.png) [@Great\_Antibob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Great_Antibob)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2015, 11:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youve-written-a-bestselling-novel-a-movie-producer-wants-to-buy-the-movie-rights/715515/39 "2015-03-20T23:10:02Z")
Yeah, sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t. The original writer is sometimes not the best person to ask. They might hate it for reasons that are at best tangential to making a good movie. Truman Capote and “Breakfast at Tiffany’s” for example. Or Roald Dahl and “Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory”. Stephen King reportedly hated Kubrick’s version of “The Shining”. In that particular case, King got to do his own mini-series version in the 90s, writing the adaptation himself, produced, and even pulled some minor assistant director duties. The result was certainly more faithful to the novel, but it’s not exactly a surprise that Kubrick did a better cinematic job than King, true to the novel or not. I understand a certain amount of pride is involved, but it takes some real chutzpah to think that success in one medium will easily translate to success in another. It does happen, but it’s the exception not the rule. Novels and TV/film are different beasts. Take the money and run. You might hate the result, but it might actually be better without your input. ---
**Author:** ![MrsTime](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d26b3c/32.png) [@MrsTime](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrsTime)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2015, 11:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youve-written-a-bestselling-novel-a-movie-producer-wants-to-buy-the-movie-rights/715515/40 "2015-03-20T23:12:35Z")
I’m not greedy I’d take the one million. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youve-written-a-bestselling-novel-a-movie-producer-wants-to-buy-the-movie-rights/715515.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/youve-written-a-bestselling-novel-a-movie-producer-wants-to-buy-the-movie-rights/715515.md?page=3)