Spec Script Deal: “Alignment”

Fifth Season and Makeready acquire thriller spec script “Alignment” written by Natan Dotan. Via THR:

An unknown writer, a fast-rising feeding frenzy, and a true multimillion-dollar deal. It’s enough to make executives or aspiring screenplay authors dream of the heady spec script deals of the 1990s.

In a deal that shakes up a sleepy Hollywood before the holidays, Fifth Season and Brad Weston’s Makeready banner have preemptively picked up Alignment, a spec script by Natan Dotan, a man who until a week ago had no representation.

The deal could become the one of biggest spec deals of the year — Nyad writer Julia Cox sold spec Love of Your Life, with Ryan Gosling producing, to Amazon in October for low seven figures — but this one involves the breaking of a writer with few Hollywood connections. It also involves a topic that is generating intense interest — and hand-wringing — in Hollywood, namely artificial intelligence.

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Alignment is described as having the urgency of thrillers such as Margin Call and Contagion and takes place in a 36-hour period. It tells of a board member at a booming AI company who wrestles with corporate politics and warped incentives as he tries to prevent his colleagues’ willful ignorance from causing a global catastrophe.

The deal is for a reported $1.25M against $3M.

Dotan had a total of two Hollywood connections. Until a week ago, he had no representation. Now with this deal, everyone in town will want to meet him. It may be too late in the year for the script to make the annual Black List, but given the buzz about the project, I wouldn’t be surprised if it slipped into contention.

Dotan is repped by Untitled Entertainment.

By my count, this is the 23rd spec script deal in 2024.

There were 8 spec script deals year-to-date in 2023.

Note: There was a five-month work stoppage in 2023 which is a key reason why spec deals were so few last year.