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December 7, 2022
KILGORE
& Franco launch cuban missile crisis series
As first reported in Variety,
Evan Kilgore and writing partner Samuel Franco have
signed on to write and Executive Produce a limited
television series revolving around the Cuban Missile
Crisis, in a partnership with Adam Goodman's Dichotomy
Creative Group.
Based
on Sheldon Stern's bestselling nonfiction book, The
Week the World Stood Still, The series focuses
on the events not only through the eyes of President
Kennedy and his brother, Bobby, but through those that
surrounded them, namely Associate Press Secretary and
White House speechwriter, Andrew T. Hatcher (at the
time, the highest ranking African American in the West
Wing) and Presidential secretary Jill Cowen, whose
transcription of the ExComm tapes gave her a front-row
seat to a world on the brink of destruction.
Franco
and Kilgore will write and executive produce the
series. Goodman will also executive produce along with
Matt Skiena and Peter Eskelsen. The search is
currently on for a director.
October 28, 2022
ARMAGEDDON
TIME'S JAMES GRAY TO DIRECT MAYDAY 109
As first reported on Deadline,
James Gray has signed on to direct World War II John
F. Kennedy thriller Mayday 109, written by
Evan Kilgore and writing partner Samuel Franco.
MadRiver Pictures’ Marc Butan will produce with
Anthony Katagas, marking their sixth collaboration
with Gray. Jacqueline de Croÿ will be executive
producer under her Dear Gaia Films banner, which
partnered on the development with MadRiver.
Kennedy
was the commander of a patrol torpedo boat on the
prowl for Japanese destroyers in August 1943. After a
battle with several Japanese ships, PT 109 was
inadvertently rammed by the Japanese
destroyer Amagin, and that was the beginning of a
harrowing week for the future president. Two died in
the explosion, and Kennedy gathered the rest of the
men — some were burned, others had swallowed
fuel-soaked seawater, and two others couldn’t swim —
and tried to salvage the ship but could not send
rescue flares for fear of drawing the enemy.
“It’s an honor to be on board this project with the
fantastic producing team at MadRiver,” said Gray. “JFK
is a figure that’s captivated the attention of the
world for decades, as an American president, an ally
of the Civil Rights movement and a cultural icon. But
this is a unique opportunity to sweep away the myth
and explore a side we don’t know at all.”
NOVEMBER 19, 2021
FRANCO
& KILGORE to remake Italian cult classic rabid
dogs
As first reported on Deadline,
Evan Kilgore and writing partner Samuel Franco have
acquired the rights to write and produce a remake of
Mario Bava's Italian cult classic crime thriller Rabid
Dogs [a.k.a. Kidnapped],
collaborating with the film's original executive
producer, Alfredo Leone.
An
adaptation of short story Man and Boy by
Michael J. Carroll, Rabid Dogs was a departure for
Bava from his colorful horror films. The film had a
challenged journey to screen. Mid-shoot, producer
Roberto Loyola declared bankruptcy, resulting in
the-then incomplete film being shelved. The movie
remained unseen for more than two decades, but has
since been released in multiple home ent versions,
with various scenes being partially re-shot, added or
removed for continuity.
One
of the versions, titled Kidnapped, was
supervised by Bava’s son, Lamberto, and his colleague,
Alfredo Leone. A Franco-Canadian remake with Lambert
Wilson and Virginie Ledoyen was released in 2015. The
U.S. scribes have been working out the original film’s
sexist tones to reimagine the film as a present-day
thriller and the first in a trilogy. Franco will
produce; Franco and Kilgore will write, with plans to
shoot in 2022 for a 2023 release; Kilgore will also
serve as exec producer.
More
details to come soon.
JUNE 18, 2021
FRANCO
& KILGORE TO ADAPT STAR OF PERSIA
FOR TELEVISION
 As
first reported on Deadline,
Evan Kilgore and writing partner Samuel Franco have
been tapped by Morris S. Levy's M.E.G.A. Films to
adapt Jill Eileen Smith's bestselling
historical-fiction novel, The Star of Persia,
for television, supplementing the lavish narrative in
the book with the duo's own meticulous research.
Star
of Persia is inspired by the Old Testament’s Book of
Esther, following a brave peasant girl, Esther, who is
enslaved by Persian King Xerxes, and forced to be a
part of his harem. There, as she works to gain the
trust and respect of the other women in the palace,
she fights to become their protector and advocate. Now
rising to wield great power as the King’s favorite
concubine, she discovers a deadly coup among his most
trusted advisors. On the heels of his army’s costly
victory over the Spartans at the Battle of Thermopylae
(as seen in Zack Snyder’s 300), Esther must decide
whether to expose and foil the plot, or become
complicit in the downfall of an empire.
More
details to come soon.
MAY 13, 2020
NOW
AVAILABLE: SHOPPING LOCAL ON INDIEBOUND.ORG
During these unprecedented times, many small
businesses are struggling to stay financially viable -
including bookstores that have been ordered in many
states and around the world to stay closed for a
significant span of time, due to the spread of
COVID-19.
In
support of these beloved independent bookshops, links
to IndieBound.org
have been added to all of the books available here.
IndieBound finds local bookstores that carry or can
order each book - and there are many of them!
MAY 2, 2020
SNOWBOUND
paperback now also available to order
 The
paperback edition of Snowbound,
Evan's fifth novel, has now also gone
live, and will begin shipping in the next one to two
weeks [current estimate] from first Amazon.com,
followed by other distribution channels.
In
this unprecedented time, please be aware that there
might be some slight delays in delivery as Amazon and
other distributors get back up to speed on new
content, and work to fulfill new orders while
balancing the need to more urgently deliver essential
items to those customers who need them the most.
However,
rest assured that your copy will be arriving soon, and
in the meantime, the Kindle edition is available for
pre-order and download, starting Tuesday, May 5, 2020,
for all customers with Amazon Kindle or compatible
devices.
Thank
you very much for your understanding, and please
continue to stay safe and healthy in this
unprecedented time.
APRIL 30, 2020
NEW
RELEASE: SNOWBOUND coming: tueSDAy, may
5, 2020
As many of us in the United States and
around the world shelter in place during this
unprecedented era of response to a global pandemic, a
genuinely bizarre collision of fiction and the present
reality we are all experiencing has emerged.
Next
Tuesday, Sovereign Publishing Group will release Snowbound,
Evan's fifth novel - a story that
revolves around a desperate family that finds itself
forced to hunker at home without electricity and with
dwindling food during a punishing snowstorm and a
widespread catastrophe that begins to seem as if it
may never end.
Snowbound
is a story of hardship, resilience, perseverance, and
reckoning, now available via pre-order
for Amazon Kindle and on sale in paperback next week.
Stay
safe, stay healthy, keep calm, and carry on in this
unprecedented, difficult time.
AUGUST 30, 2019
Franco
& Kilgore sell PITCH THE FALL OF THE
HOUSE OF FIFA TO FX
 As
first reported on Deadline,
Fresh off of inking with new reps at Management
360, Franco & Kilgore have sold a TV
pitch to FX Networks based on David Conn's
groundbreaking, bestselling non-fiction exposé, The
Fall of the House of FIFA, which
revolves around the never-before-disclosed widespread
corruption that infested the most popular sport on the
planet.
ITV Studios America will join forces with FX Networks,
production shingle Flame Ventures, and Director Peter
Landesman (Concussion) for the 10-part
limited series that follows in the tonal footsteps of
The Big Short, House of Cards, and The
People vs. OJ Simpson in shining an
unforgettable spotlight on one of the largest and
least-talked-about cases of corruption in our time.
More details to come soon.
APRIL 13, 2018
REED
MORANO TO DIRECT 'keeper of the diary'
 As
first scooped
by The Hollywood
Reporter, Emmy-winning director Reed
Morano (The
Handmaid's Tale) has signed on to helm Keeper
of the Diary, Franco & Kilgore's
post-World War II drama about Holocaust survivor Otto
Frank's desperate efforts to secure publication for
the salvaged diary of his slain daughter, Anne.
While Kenneth
Branagh was forced to drop out of directing the film
due to scheduling conflicts, Reed steps in with an
impressive pedigree and a true artist's eye.
Franco and Kilgore
worked enthusiastically with Branagh, and are equally
excited to bring Reed's vision to the project,
produced by Weimaraner Republic and Fox Searchlight
Pictures. More details to come soon.
'keeper
of the diary' NAMED ON THE 2017 'BLACK LIST'
 Evan
Kilgore
and screenwriting partner Samuel Franco are humbled to
be included on this year's edition of The Black List,
a rundown of Hollywood's favorite yet-to-be-produced
screenplays on the market, voted by a wide variety of
industry executives and professionals.
Keeper
of the Diary, Franco & Kilgore's film
about Otto Frank's emotional struggle to publish the
diary of his daughter, Anne, joins dozens of
incredible scripts by very talented screenwriters.
Check
out the
Black List 2017 right here.
'keeper
of the diary' MAKES TRACKING BOARD'S 2017 'HIT
LIST'
 Evan
Kilgore and screenwriting partner Samuel Franco are
deeply honored to make The Tracking Board's 2017 Hit
List. Keeper of the
Diary, Franco & Kilgore's film about Otto
Frank's emotional struggle to publish the diary of his
daughter, Anne, has been named to this year's edition
of the list, alongside numerous other amazing
projects.
Check
out The Tracking Board's full
Hit List 2017 right here.
NOVEMBER 28, 2017
variety franco & kilgore
PROFILE APPEARS IN TODAY'S ISSUE
 As part of their
feature on 2017's Top 10 Writers to Watch list,
Variety has profiled Evan Kilgore & Samuel Franco,
along with the other nine writers who were chosen this
year. Check out the brief overview of each writer or
team - every one of them are fantastic folks.
The
Variety
feature can be found here.
NOVEMBER 20, 2017
variety: franco & kilgore
among 'TOP 10 WRITERS TO WATCH'
Evan Kilgore and screenwriting partner
Samuel Franco were deeply humbled and honored to learn
today that they have been included on Variety's list
of The 10 Screenwriters to Watch in 2017. Further
interviews, articles, and details to come at the
official event at this year's Whistler Film Festival.
For
now, check out Variety
official announcement here.
JUNE 29, 2017
ANSEL ELGORT TO star AS JFK in
"MAYDAY 109"
 Mayday
109 has found its skipper. As announced in
Deadline, Ansel Elgort has signed on to play the young
John F. Kennedy, captain of the PT-109 in the upcoming
World War II action-thriller from Thunder Road
Pictures and Flynn Picture Co.
Elgort, known for
his breakout role in The
Fault in Our Stars, and whose most recent
release, Baby
Driver, opened to critical acclaim and
commercial success over the summer, will also join in
producing.
More to come
soon, and in the meantime, check out the
Deadline article here
or Variety's
piece on the announcement here.
MAY 14, 2017
kenneth branagh to direct and
star in "keeper of the diary"
 As first reported
by
Deadline,
KEEPER OF THE DIARY has found its filmmaker and star.
Academy Award-nominated actor/director Kenneth
Branagh will play the starring role of Otto
Frank and direct the story of his desperate struggle
to publish the book with which his deceased daughter,
Anne Frank, would later change the world, The
Diary of a Young Girl.
Fox Searchlight
is moving fast to put the film into production.
More to come
soon, and in the meantime, check out the
Deadline article here.
APRIL 30, 2017
READ THE KILGORE & FRANCO
INTERVIEW ON "KEEPER OF THE DIARY"
The good folks at
Final Draft have interviewed Evan Kilgore and
writing partner Samuel Franco about the process, the
research, the motivation, and the experience behind
writing KEEPER OF THE DIARY, their upcoming
feature at Fox Searchlight. Check out the complete
interview
right here!
JANUARY 15, 2017
fox searchlight buys red-hot
SPEC "keeper of the diary"
 As first reported
by
Deadline,
over the weekend and verging into Saturday night, a
fierce bidding war arose around KEEPER OF THE
DIARY, a new spec script by Samuel Franco &
Evan Kilgore that centers on the untold true story of
Otto Frank's struggle to publish the Diary of his
daughter, Anne Frank. Young up-and-coming Doubleday
junior editor Barbara Zimmerman becomes the champion
that he needs in the face of skepticism and resistance
around the world.
Evan and Sam are
humbled and thrilled to have contributed to this
story, and are beyond excited to work with producing
partners Lynn Harris and Matti Leshem at Weimaraner
Republic Pictures, as well as Stacey Snider and the
Fox family, in bringing this emotional journey to the
big screen.
More to come
soon, and in the meantime, check out the
Deadline article here.
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here to view previous articles in Archived News.
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