The Screenplay Writer

Lee Mavin saved the document on Libre Office and leaned back on his hard wood chair. The story was finally finished. It was epic. It was romantic. It was tragic. And it all belonged to Bella Blake, his ex, who gave up on marriage to pursue a career in acting. With her photogenic good looks, the offers came, but mostly supporting roles, like the best friend or the sister in the middle. This was the story that would change all that. He wrote it for her, for her to be a star, and for himself to maybe win her back. But he knew that was a contradiction. If she was a star, she’d leave him even further behind than she had already with that messy divorce. He didn’t want to let her go, but he had to, because with or without the separation, she’d abandoned him for Hollywood. 

That’s when he got the idea. Write her the perfect screenplay. Encourage her success. 

The story was simple. Space creature comes to Earth in the disguise of a human female. She’d then scout the Earth for conquest. Her planet was counting on her to find the perfect world to colonize. All told, the story was about a budget of $50 to $100 million to make it to the big screen. 

Time to call the agent. 

Maxine Mayler represented Lee's books to publishers and to movie studio heads. She had a very generous contact list, powerful people who traded favors for information. Hollywood was the only place where insider trading was a requirement to be an agent. Maxine called in one of those favors. A few days after I sent her the screenplay, she notified me that Time & Tide Entertainment wanted the story. That's when I threw Max the curveball. I would give up first rights if Bella was tied to the role of the space creature. Max tossed back a bigger curveball: The producer, Harry Leader, demanded the same thing when he read the script: He, too, wanted Bella for the part.

Then the whole jealousy thing flared up. What did he want from Bella besides acting? Max told me in a calming voice, He wants the same thing you want, for Bella to star in the film. A moment of quiet, a deep breath, and I said, Sell it. Then I hung up and let the worry furrow my brow. What had I done?

Harry Leader met with the production team after the first day of shooting was complete. They all had the same complaint: Drop the "space alien" angle. Make the main character a power broker from some big firm angling for a hostile takeover. Harry chewed on the request a few days before contacting Maxine and informing her of the change. No problem, Max said. One more thing, Harry added, We want to drop Mavin as main writer and tack on a "Based on an idea by Lee Mavin". What do you think? Max answered, It's your movie now, Harry. As long as Bella is the star, Lee's happy. Good to hear, good to hear, and then Harry hung up.

That afternoon, Harry's boss, Drew Kirby, President of T&T E, called Bella Blake about the changes to the script and notifying her that he sent a courier with the new script. When Bella received her copy a few hours after Kirby called her, she saw that Lee's name was taken off the new storyline. It broke her heart. She wondered if he knew about the changes.

Lee got the call from Max about the changes right about the time the T&T E courier was halfway to Bella's place. He didn't care. As long as Bella was happy.

The trade papers front-covered the story: Bella Blake returns to the big screen playing an oil tycoon who takes on the corrupt oil industry. Social media picked up on the story and saturated every platform with the news: Bella was back.

Harry finished reading the Hollywood Daily and smiled at the front cover with Bella's beautiful face. He always had a thing for her. Plus this was a million dollar project. He was on top again. The studio went in with the whole $100 million, with a $50 million marketing chaser. He'd attend all the premieres with his star, he'd wine and dine her, he'd buy more scripts for her to star in. She'd be grateful. They always are.

Lee Mavin was happy. A pile of trade papers covered his desk. Bella's beautiful face graced the cover of every one of them. Then someone knocked at his door. He answered suspiciously. No one knew about his new studio apartment. It was Bella. She was fighting back tears. Just listen, she said. I'm not making the movie. I walked out. Do you mind if I come in for some coffee, or just to talk? Remember when we talked for hours? Lee said, But it's your big comeback. With all those changes, it wasn't our movie anymore. He said in response, Maybe this is our movie. She smiled and walked past him, entering the neat writing studio where she knew he liked to hide.

Without looking straight into the camera and winking at the audience, Lee closed the door with THE END written right beneath the peephole.