Before you ask it is about a Spy and non commedically gets the shit kicked out of her. And keeps coming back to the Orginization for more jobs because she needs the money. And keeps getting the shit kicked out of her and sometimes she gets the job done and sometimes not. And the ones she does she gets and increasingly more enemies. She then tells the orginization she needs help and they are like fuck you. So she has to fight them all by herself and her kid. Who is like 10 and she taught him how not to get picked on in school. Then taught him how to use a gun and knifes. And they have this final standoff in their neighbors house.
Nothing. Now go watch Matrix again.
Put some “Copyright © Patnou, [year]” notices in prominent places on the manuscript.
People have mentioned a few ways, but you can’t really stop it. They can change it enough to claim it was someone else’s idea. It’s also why you used to see similar movies of the same concept coming out around the same time. An idea people deemed good floated around and studios would race to be the first ones out.
The classic “poor man’s copyright” is to mail the script to yourself in a sealed envelope and put it somewhere safe unopened. Then if anyone steals your idea you have a dated postmark on the envelope to prove when you created it. You definitely don’t have to worry about the studio stealing your idea though. They have systems in place that keep the people who read spec scripts isolated from other creative employees at the studio for that exact reason. Lawsuits are way more expensive that low balling an option offer.
Other people have pointed this out but the major studios don’t really buy spec scripts anymore. They want something that comes with an audience already so you either need to build that somehow on social media or write for existing IP (but you’d need to license it yourself). Before a good apec script might have been adapted into an existing IP like your spy being rewritten as Jason Bourne, but since VC money bought out the studios they want more than a good script to produce a film these says.
A body horror story about a pregnant woman who starts to think her unborn child might be the anti christ, and has terrifying dreams of the apocalypse, and seeks the aid of the Catholic church
They want something that comes with an audience already
… But with Minions! …that help her perform the abortion the Catholic church refuses.
That’s Rosemary’s Baby, minions and all. The minions in the movie just looked more like satanic cultists.
Happens often. Be careful.
Do the old “mail it to yourself and leave it unsealed with a postmark” gambit.
Email
That actually work.?
If it’s certified mail, probably.
But that’s assuming they’re not going to change enough to skirt copyright laws.
I think you’re asking the wrong question. The better question is ‘How do I get my screenplay produced?’
I’m not an expert, but my understanding is that movie studios don’t really produce unsolicited screenplays anymore. You really need to produce it yourself, or be a known screenwriter who has prior relationships with producers.
If you don’t already have writing credits and an agent, you likely either need to produce it yourself – which means finding a director and actors and raising the money to pay for things – or you should try to publish it as a novel that becomes groundshakingly popular like The Martian or Dungeon Crawler Carl.
But the good news is that you can rest assured that having it stolen isn’t a risk you need to worry about.
Because they would have to invent a writer and pay them anyway to pass WGA scrutiny, and a first time writer’s script is literally the cheapest thing the studio can buy.
My strategy would be to share it with multiple people so I have witnesses to attest that I wrote it
Normally you’ll ask for a recipe of delivery or other way to testify that you have drop something off.
Happen to me once, not for a script but for other papers. My job at the time kept « losing » my pay paper in internal mail. So I had to go to the person working my files and asked for a recipe of delivery, the face she made was priceless. They didn’t lose my papers this time
Hey, friendo, the word you’re looking for (or autocorrect is messing with you) is receipt. Recipe is something that explains how to create something else, generally how to prepare a meal.
Ha yes. Thanks
I thought maybe it was an industry term for, like, the route the package took - the recipe for how to deliver it. You clarified things for me.
Where I’ve been, that (or something similar) is called certified mail.
What’s funny is that recipe used to also be receipt. The two words were interchangeable for cooking instructions
That is interesting.
Watch enough tasting history and Townsends, it shows up a lot
Fair enough!
Make a cheap website and publish it there with your name as the copyright. THEN send it in. That way. You got automatic records that can back you up in a legal dispute
That’s why magazines and other such media organizations usually have a mention not to send manuscripts and such, because they don’t want the legal hassle.
Nothing. Happens all the time. Your best bet is to file a copyright in the work and subtly state that in the script
It categorically does not happen all the time.
Of course, if you do an official copyright filing, they’ll likely reject the script and then generate one using AI that extracts the most interesting bits but in a totally non-infringing way.
Welcome to scriptwriting in 2026.
Well you’d need to paint him blue and have eiffel65 do the soundtrack of course.
Keep lots of logs of the writing and the sending, pray this actually happens so you can sue and settle out of court.
