So you want to write a screenplay that sells to Hollywood! Well, guess what? One of the best ways to do this is to get a Hollywood movie star on your side.
What About A Screenplay Agent?
Yes, you’re going to need an agent too. Here’s how it works.
Hollywood agents represent both screenwriters and movie stars. Get your screenplay to an agent and they can get it to a movie star.
But why do you need to get your script to a movie star?
Because movie stars have a lot of leverage, this means that if they like your script then they can act as a fast track to getting your script made into a movie.
Writing Scripts For Movie Stars
So how exactly do you write a script for a movie star?
Movie stars live in a world of extreme pressure. Pressure to be successful. Pressure to maintain their image. Pressure to pick the right movies. And pressure to pick the right roles.
Successful movie stars are very good at image maintenance. After all, they’re protecting their most important brand… themselves!
That is why they don’t want to be portrayed in movies as weak or disgusting or creepy. They want to be seen as heroic and noble and often romantic characters.
(note, the same doesn’t hold true for character actors–we’re talking about movie stars here.)
Write Big Scenes
When writing screenplays that attract movie stars, you want to make sure that your main character has most of the screen time.
You also want to make sure that your main character has rousing speeches, is able to express big emotions, and that they have scenes worthy of an Oscar performance. Movie stars can sense it when a script has all these elements and they are drawn to this material. In short: movie stars are always on the lookout for a great script and their agents are always looking too.
If you can write a great screenplay that contains all of the “movie star” elements, you have a great chance to get that script into the hands of a script agent who can then pass it on to a prominent movie star.
There’s nothing like harnessing the power of a Hollywood star to get your script made into a movie!
*Jennifer Sloane has worked as a screenplay agent in Los Angeles and Nashville for the last five years. Jennifer loves good movies, music and animals. A former television and movie executive, Jennifer currently heads business development at Script Mailer (a company that connects screenwriters with agents and producers in Hollywood).