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A JK Rowling biopic is one of the best scripts of 2017

Photo credit: ITV
Photo credit: ITV

From Digital Spy

Harry Potter creator JK Rowling might be getting her own major motion picture in the not-too-distant future.

A biopic of the author, which tells the story of how at age 25 she was juggling her career and personal life and managed to create the now iconic wizarding world, is one of the scripts at the top of the 'Black List' – an annual rundown of the most popular unproduced screenplays of the year.

The movie is called When Lightning Strikes, and is written by newcomer Anna Klassen.

The Black List is compiled of screenplays that aren't in production that year. It's voted for by movie execs and in the past has included the screenplays for Spotlight, Slumdog Millionaire, Arrival and Argo.

Biopics seem to be big this year – the list also includes true-life stories of John Hughes, Elon Musk, David Prowse and many more.

Photo credit: Randy Holmes / ABC / Getty Images
Photo credit: Randy Holmes / ABC / Getty Images

Some of the scripts already have talent attached, including WWII drama Ruin, which has Gal Gadot and Assassin's Creed director Justin Kurzel on board.

Here's the top ten – head to Deadline for the full list of the 76 scripts that made the cut.

RUIN

Matthew Firpo, Ryan Firpo

A nameless ex-Nazi captain must navigate the ruins of post-WWII Germany to atone for his crimes during the war by hunting down and killing the surviving members of his former SS death squad.

LET HER SPEAK

Mario Correa

The true story of Senator Wendy Davis and her 24-hour filibuster to save 75% of abortion clinics in Texas.

DADDIO

Christy Hall

A passenger and her cab driver reminisce about their relationships on the way from the airport to her apartment in New York.

KEEPER OF THE DIARY

Samuel Franco, Evan Kilgore

Chronicles Otto Frank's journey, with the help of a junior editor at Doubleday Press, to find a publisher for the diary his daughter Anne wrote during the Holocaust.

WHERE I END

Imran Zaidi

In a world where your life can be saved, uploaded to a computer, and restarted in the case of your untimely demise, a husband returns from the dead, suspecting his wife may have been involved in his death.

WHEN LIGHTNING STRIKES

Anna Klassen

The true story of 25-year-old Joanne Rowling as she weathers first loves, unexpected pregnancies, lost jobs, and depression on her journey to create Harry Potter.

Photo credit: Warner Bros.
Photo credit: Warner Bros.

BREAKING NEWS IN YUBA COUNTY

Amanda Idoko

After catching her husband in bed with a hooker, which causes him to die of a heart attack, Sue Bottom buries the body and takes advantage of the local celebrity status that comes from having a missing husband.

SLEEP WELL TONIGHT

Freddie Skov

Behind the walls of a maximum security prison, a naive teenage inmate and a rookie correctional officer are forced into a drug smuggling operation, while a looming conflict between rival gang members threatens to boil over.

THE GREAT NOTHING

Cesar Vitale

A grieving 13-year-old girl hires a terminally ill, acerbic philosophy professor to prevent flunking the seventh grade. What begins as a homework assignment blossoms into an unlikely friendship and a new appreciation for life that neither will forget.

TRAPLINE

Brett Treacy, Dan Woodward

A captive boy's lifestyle is upended when his abductor asks for his help kidnapping a second child.


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