This story first appeared in the Oct. 30 issue of The Hollywood Reporter magazine. To receive the magazine, click here to subscribe.
With the success of Serial, multipart, long-form podcasts are getting a close look in Hollywood. One that’s attracting lots of attention is the mockumentary Limetown, which purports to investigate the disappearance of a group of neuroscientists (and their families). A Hollywood screenwriter is also attracting attention — but not for a script. Elan Mastai’s (What If) deal for his debut novel is generating more buzz that anyone’s — other that Amy Schumer.
Limetown by Zack Akers and Skip Bronkie
Agency: WME
Only three episodes in (out of a projected seven), this fictional podcast described as Serial meets The X-Files already is drawing rave reviews. The faux-documentary mystery explores how 327 people — neuroscientists working on a top-secret project and their families — disappeared without a trace.
All Our Wrong Todays by Elan Mastai (Dutton)
Agencies: Gersh, Writers House
A $1 million-plus advance and buzz among buyers at October’s Frankfurt Book Fair have made the screenwriter’s debut novel (set to be published in 2016) the most talked-about book deal of the fall. A young man travels from a utopian alternate world to ours, where he must decide whether to stay or return.
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