The Reel World
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the exchange the shift THE REEL WORLD Hollywood has long adapted magazine articles into films, but the most recent wave reflects moviegoers’ changing tastes—and an unexpected upside for a risk-averse industry. BY STINSON CARTER ILLUSTRATION BY BEN WISEMAN N THE CINEMATIC ERA of superheroes and sequels, movies is facing more challenges than ever. Studios Needless to say, things did not go according to plan sometimes it seems that all the smart content increasingly want safe bets, which usually come for the two young men. has migrated to television. But based-on-a-true- dressed in colorful tights. Many producers who want Known for raucous comedies like Old School and story movies with a journalistic pedigree—like to make sophisticated, grown-up movies are turning The Hangover, Phillips, who co-wrote, directed and IArgo and Spotlight—are the thinking moviegoer’s to long-form journalism for source material. produced War Dogs, opted for a slightly more seri- refuge at the multiplex. When it comes to making Director Todd Phillips’s new film, War Dogs (out ous tone with his first film based on an article.Argo “ smart films that don’t break the bank in present-day in August), is the latest example. Starring Jonah did a lot of the heavy lifting for a movie like War Dogs Hollywood, truth is the new fiction. Hill and Miles Teller, the comic drama is based on because it’s the same studio, and it was a huge success The practice of turning magazine stories into mov- “Arms and the Dudes,” a March 2011 Rolling Stone for them. They took an interesting article and made a ies has a long history; Dog Day Afternoon, Saturday article by Guy Lawson. It chronicles two opportunis- phenomenal film that really resonated,” he says. Night Fever, Boogie Nights and Almost Famous are all tic twentysomethings in Miami Beach who landed a Argo is the poster child of the magazine-to-movie examples of films that were inspired by articles. Now nearly $300 million defense contract during the Bush model, with its three Academy Awards and over Hollywood’s rapidly changing business model is fuel- administration, exploiting a so-called small-business $200 million in worldwide box office earnings. So ing a new wave. Thanks to high-tech, 4K home theaters initiative that allowed pretty much anyone with an it’s no mystery why Warner Bros., the same studio and streaming services, the theatrical distribution of Internet connection to bid on U.S. military contracts. behind Argo, has similar ambitions for War Dogs. > 44 wsj. magazine the exchange the shift AMERICAN GANGSTER PAGE ARGO The 2007 Ridley The 2012 Academy Award–winning Scott–directed film, SATURDAY TURNERS film, directed by and starring Ben starring Denzel NIGHT FEVER Affleck, was inspired by Joshuah Washington and The 1977 film, Bearman’s 2007 Wired article. Russell Crowe, starring John Hollywood has relied was based on Mark Travolta, was on source material Jacobson’s 2000 inspired by from stage plays and New York article. Nik Cohn’s 1976 New York article. books for decades, but many magazine articles have also served as inspiration for movies from Dog Day Afternoon WAR DOGS to American Gangster Out in August, the Todd to War Dogs. Phillips–directed film stars Jonah Hill and Miles Teller BOOGIE NIGHTS THE BLING RING and is based on Guy Lawson’s The 2013 movie, 2011 Rolling Stone article. The 1997 film, directed by Paul Thomas Anderson directed by Sofia and starring Mark Coppola, turned to Wahlberg and Julianne Nancy Jo Sales’s 2010 Moore, was inspired Vanity Fair article. by Mike Sager’s 1989 DOG DAY Rolling Stone article. AFTERNOON The 1975 Oscar-winning movie, starring ALMOST FAMOUS Al Pacino, The 2000 Academy was based on Award–winning P.F. Kluge and movie, written and ADAPTATION Thomas Moore’s directed by Cameron The 2002 film, directed by Spike 1972 Life article. Crowe and starring Jonze and starring Nicolas Cage, Kate Hudson, took Meryl Streep and Chris Cooper, cues from Crowe’s 1973 was based on Susan Orlean’s 1995 Rolling Stone article. New Yorker article. Like Argo, the film is based on a magazine article that choice to a financial necessity. “What we’re seeing to turn to journalists who are out in the field find- key difference is that in order to profit from film and successful transition from journalism to mass enter- the Taliban in a prisoner exchange. “We were really digs into a period of history we thought we knew, in is a desire on behalf of financiers, particularly major ing them—rather than screenwriters who are by and television rights, the magazine publishers must pos- tainment. And his new production company, Page attracted to that story, because you have this small order to tell a story that no one would believe if it studios, for proof of concept,” says Mark Gordon, the large geographically tethered to Los Angeles. sess those rights, which in the past were typically 1, which he started in 2013, could be described as story at the front of it—just one guy and what he did— weren’t actually true. “Oftentimes truth is stranger veteran producer (Saving Private Ryan, The Patriot, “It’s hard to find original ideas in Santa Monica, retained by the journalists themselves. an embodiment of this trend of combining the two. and then you had this tremendous resonance and than fiction,” says Phillips. “Which is what you find Steve Jobs) who first brought the article that inspired and journalists go out into the world and find them,” “What amazed me in a happy way when I started The company is co-run by former magazine edi- reverberation in the world,” he says. After amass- with Argo and hopefully with War Dogs.” War Dogs to Todd Phillips’s attention. There’s a prac- says Lawson, who wrote not only War Dogs’ underly- in the business is that I would retain the copyright tor Hugo Lindgren and backed by producer Megan ing hours of interviews with Bergdahl and becoming Argo’s impact came as a surprise to journal- tical reason for optioning an article rather than just ing Rolling Stone article but also a 2015 book on the ownership of my work,” Lawson recalls. “It’s like the Ellison’s company, Annapurna Pictures. Tossing out experts on his story, Page 1 found it had enough mate- ist Joshuah Bearman, who wrote the Wired article appropriating the underlying idea: “If War Dogs same subject—Arms and the Dudes. one piece of dignity that you get, the old dynamic of screenwriters rial on its hands to cross over from journalistic film (“The Great Escape”) on which the film is based. wasn’t a true story, I think an audience would have “The magazine world is a bazaar of ideas for and now some media companies are spitballing ideas with development research to journalism proper, with a collaboration “Argo was my first article that was optioned, and a hard time buying it,” says Gordon. “Audiences are movies, where Hollywood can go shopping for new taking that away. As someone who “oftentimes executives, Page 1 assigns journal- on the newest season of the podcast Serial, which was it was only my second big magazine story,” says more attentive these days to things that are true— stories,” Lawson says. Typical film options for arti- loves journalism, I feel like this next truth is ists to report on broad themes, such based on Bergdahl. In developing an upcoming crime Bearman, who was contributing to LA Weekly when even if they’re modified substantially.” cles can range from $5,000 to $75,000, while actually generation of journalists is getting as wealth inequality. drama set during the 1967 Detroit riots and directed he wrote the Wired article. “And then I sold my next How substantially these stories are modified varies making a film like Argo costs tens of millions, so the ripped off.” stranger “Journalism is part of our devel- by Kathryn Bigelow, Boal led a team of five journalists 10 stories. All of them.” from movie to movie. “In the case of Argo, the movie ratio of what gets made versus what gets optioned Another element that may be than opment process,” says Lindgren, on six months of interviews and research. Bearman served as a consultant on Argo as well worked because of its authenticity,” says Bearman, remains low. For studios, these options are an inex- bolstering these types of films is fiction.” who was the editor of the New York Investigative journalism is high risk for a produc- as a creative producer on other projects adapted who provided the screenwriters with ample research. pensive way to buy story legitimacy. “The business of the recent change to the Academy Times Magazine, then worked at the tion company, Lindgren says. His company has to go —todd phillips from his articles, including an upcoming movie But in his experience, the process differs from genre Hollywood is becoming a little less entrepreneurial,” Award nomination rules. “It wasn’t Hollywood Reporter and left pub- down the road a long way with a story before really based on his two-part Wired article “The Rise and to genre: For example, there is often more creative he says. “And along with that has come the need for a too long ago that there were only lishing in 2014 to run Page 1 with knowing if it has that “resonance and reverbera- Fall of Silk Road,” published last year. He believes freedom with comedies. While War Dogs has a heavy stamp of approval from the New York Times, Rolling five best picture nominees, and now there can be up Boal.