Screenplay for Channing Tatum’s Project Makes the 2008 “Black List”

One of the things I truly love about doing this site is that I get to learn a lot about the entertainment industry and how it works. I also like to pass that knowledge along to CTU readers. I figure a little knowledge never hurt anyone.

In today's Hollywood 101 lesson, we all get to learn about "The Black List". This is not your mother or your grandmother's Hollywood Black List from back in the 40's, and it's not the critically-acclaimed HBO documentary series. I'm refering to the list that was started two years ago by a young executive at Leonardo DiCaprio’s production company, Appian Way.

THE PAST

The exec asked 90+ peers to send him their 10 favorite new, unproduced screenplays to read over the holidays. The underground list was then e-mailed around and quickly became a Hollywood phenomenon. To give you an idea, the top three entries of the 2005 list included screenplays for Halle Berry's 'Things We Lost in the Fire', Ellen Pages' 'Juno', and Ryan Gosling's 'Lars and the Real Girl'.

THE PRESENT

Fast forward to 2008 and this year's list was compiled by polling 250 (up from last year’s 150) development executives and high-level assistants. It contains a ranking of the hottest screenplays making the rounds in Hollywood.

The rules are that the screenplays had to be written in, or are somehow uniquely associated with, 2008 and will not be released in theaters during this calendar year. This year, scripts had to receive at least four mentions to be included on the list.

If you're interested, you can CLICK HERE to get more details on the top ten scripts on the list from Entertainment Weekly.

THE FUTURE

At this point, I'm sure you're asking what this has to do with Channing Tatum...

This year, Chan's new agency, UTA, has bragging rights to the most screenplays on the list and one of those screenplays is tied to one of Chan's upcoming projects.

Writer/producer Doug Jung ("Big Love") wrote a screenplay that's currently called "Untitled Channing Tatum Project" and with 4 mentions, it's earned a spot on this year's Black List.

As I previously reported last year, Fox Atomic (a division of Fox Searchlight that produces and acquires genre films for teen and young adult audiences) picked up the script and will become the first Hollywood group to produce a studio movie in South Korea.

Channing is not only starring in the film, he's also going to be one of the film's executive producers (along with two of his managers Peter Kiernan and William Choi from Management 360), which is why Chan is currently learning how to speak Korean.

In the film, Chan will play a Los Angeles cop who escorts a Korean gang leader back to South Korea. When the gang leader escapes, killing the cop’s partner in the process, he teams with a young Korean gangster in a bloody pursuit of revenge that takes them through the dangerous and exotic underworld of Seoul.

Well, that's it for today's lesson. Hopefully, like me, you've learned a little something new about the entertainment world!!!

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NEWS FLASH: Channing Tatum to Star in and Executive Produce the First Hollywood Movie to Ever Film in South Korea

In a recent 'RUMOR or REEL?' post on the blog, I mentioned there were rumors floating around saying that Channing Tatum may have lined up a new role.

Entertainment Weekly had reported that a pitch from screenwriter Doug Jung (Confidence) was being shopped all around Hollywood. EW portrayed the role as a "fish-out-of-water" story where Chan would play an American cop in South Korea, and we also learned that no other Hollywood studio has ever filmed in the country.

I am extremely excited to report that Fox Atomic (a division of Fox Searchlight that produces and acquires genre films for teen and young adult audiences) has picked up the film and Channing is not only starring in it, he's also going to be one of the film's executive producers along with two of his managers (Peter Kiernan and William Choi from Management 360).

You can read the Variety article in its entirety below:

Fox Atomic Will Go to Korea
Group becomes first to produce film in country
By PATRICK FRATER

Fox Atomic will become the first Hollywood group to produce a studio movie in South Korea when it goes ahead with an untitled pic starring Channing Tatum.

Project was bought as a pitch by the Debbie Liebling-headed division from scripter Doug Jung ("Confidence") before the WGA strike. Roy Lee and Doug Davison of Vertigo Entertainment are attached to produce.

The police thriller set in Seoul sets Tatum as a American cop who teams up with a big-time criminal in order to enter the Korean underworld.

Zak Kadison will oversee the project for Fox Atomic. Tatum, Peter Kiernan and William Choi of Management 360 are attached as executive producers. Helmer and a Korean producing partner have yet to be attached.

Pic is not the first sign of Fox interest in Korea, a market where, even after a recent dip, local films dominate the B.O. In April, it was revealed that Paul Hanneman, co-president of Fox Intl., and Kim Woo-taek, CEO of major Korean distrib Showbox, had struck a preliminary agreement that could see the studio co-financing and co-producing Korean pictures. At roughly the same time, Fox exec Mike Heard scouted locations in Seoul and Busan.

Fox Atomic was launched last year as a division of Fox Searchlight to produce and acquire genre films for teen and young adult audiences.

Here's a huge ***HIGH FIVE*** to Chan for adding the coveted title of Executive Producer to his belt so soon in the game and congrats for also adding to his already amazingly long list of upcoming projects. As always, the fans are happy to know we'll have even more opportunities to see Chan on the big screen.

Source: Variety.com

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