After one of the craziest weeks in Wall Street history, in which amateur stock traders were able to outwit stock market regulars thanks to, of all things, GameStop stock, it’s no surprise that Hollywood has quickly latched onto making a film about the bizarre saga. But not just one.
First, MGM have acquired not a book, but a book proposal titled The Antisocial Network from bestselling author Ben Mezrich, which, per Deadline, “tells one of the biggest news stories of the year, about a ragtag group of amateur investors, gamers, and internet trolls who brought Wall Street to its knees”.
Even though the story is barely a week old, Mezrich and his reps reportedly took the proposal on the market at the end of last week, and by Friday night MGM had moved fast in a competitive bidding war to acquire the rights.
And even though it’s just a proposal, the deal makes sense, as it reunites current MGM producer Michael DeLuca with Mezrich, who also wrote The Accidental Billionaires, which was adapted into David Fincher‘s The Social Network, which DeLuca produced. If this project turns into half the film that is, MGM will be very happy.
But there’s a second film about the GameStop story in the works, this one at Netflix. The streaming giant is reportedly in negotiations with Mark Boal (The Hurt Locker, Zero Dark Thirty) to at least write the screenplay, and activist/journalist/tech expert Scott Galloway in talks to consult on the script. Netflix have attached their home-grown star Noah Centineo to play a major role.
On top of those two films, there’s also a limited series reportedly in the works. Producers Jessamine Burgum and Matthew Cooper of Pinky Promise have attached Noam Tomaschoff (Tankhouse) to write a limited series titled To the Moon. They’ve reportedly already begun working with longtime members of the subreddit r/WallStreetBets on the project.
Hollywood moves fast when it smells the chance at easy profits. Expect Netflix’s film to probably arrive first, since they can eschew a big marketing push and quickly release the film whenever they want, plus MGM have to wait for Mezrich’s book. But MGM’s project feels a little more prestigious, at least so far. It may depend on who the studio can get to direct and star.
#Peace.Love.GameStop
