Overview of Why Hollywood Can't Find Good Scripts
This episode of The Journal features Franklin Leonard, founder of The Black List, a once-secret annual list of Hollywood’s best unproduced screenplays. The conversation explores why great scripts are so hard to find, how the Black List became a career-making signal for writers, and what Leonard sees as the biggest structural problems in Hollywood today — from talent discovery and risk-aversion to consolidation and the rise of global storytelling.
What The Black List Is and Why It Matters
- The Black List is an annual survey of the most-liked unproduced screenplays in Hollywood.
- It began in 2005 when Leonard, then working at Leonardo DiCaprio’s production company, asked peers for the best scripts they had read that year.
- The list quickly became influential because it:
- surfaced scripts that were being overlooked,
- created a shared signal of quality,
- and helped great writing get attention from decision-makers.
Its impact by the numbers
- 500+ Black List scripts have become feature films since 2005.
- Those films have grossed over $30 billion worldwide.
- Black List scripts have won 60 Academy Awards, including 4 Best Picture winners.
Why Finding Good Screenplays Is So Hard
Leonard argues that screenwriting is difficult to judge because:
- A script has to be read in full before its quality becomes clear.
- Great scripts are rare.
- Studio reading systems are disorganized and highly dependent on personal connections.
- If a script isn’t already inside the system, it can be nearly impossible for a writer to get it in front of the right people.
He describes Hollywood’s discovery process as fundamentally broken — more about who you know than how good you are.
How the Black List Grew Into a Business
Around 2012, Leonard expanded the Black List into a company that lets writers:
- upload scripts to a platform,
- pay for professional feedback,
- and gain exposure to industry readers.
He says the goal was to solve a broader access problem:
- writers should not need to move to Los Angeles,
- work low-wage service jobs,
- or network endlessly just to be noticed,
- when the real question should be whether they wrote something great.
Why the Black List Became Prestigious
Leonard says the Black List works because it redirects attention rather than “making” a movie itself.
Key idea:
- A great script can attract a great director, cast, and financing.
- Crowdsourcing the opinions of many readers helps surface scripts worth a second look.
- The list gives executives social proof: if many peers liked a script, they’re more likely to read it.
He acknowledges the process is subjective, but says it creates a useful signal in an otherwise noisy system.
What Makes a Movie Succeed
Leonard emphasizes that:
- the screenplay is the foundation of the entire filmmaking process,
- writers are undervalued economically,
- and good writing has measurable business value.
He cites a Harvard Business School study finding that films made from Black List scripts earn about 90% more revenue than comparable films made from non-Black List scripts.
His core thesis
If Hollywood starts with a great script, it has a much better chance of making:
- a better movie,
- a more successful movie,
- and a more sustainable business.
Why So Many Bad Movies Still Get Made
Leonard says bad movies persist for a few reasons:
- Making a good movie is extremely hard.
- There are many decisions between greenlight and final cut.
- Budget, locations, tax incentives, and actor preferences can all distort the script.
- Conventional wisdom often replaces real judgment.
- Executives may follow formulas instead of trusting originality.
- Hollywood still overlooks talent outside the system.
- The industry keeps reaching for people and ideas that are already nearby.
His comparison: Hollywood’s talent pipeline is like the NBA only recruiting from Midtown Manhattan instead of scouting everywhere.
Sequel and IP Culture: Why Hollywood Keeps Reheating Old Ideas
Leonard says the flood of sequels, franchises, and adaptations is driven by economics:
- movies are expensive,
- studios want to reduce risk,
- familiar IP gives audiences something they already recognize,
- and that can make marketing easier.
He doesn’t think sequels are inherently bad — he points out that The Godfather Part II is a sequel, and Gone with the Wind was an adaptation. The real issue is not whether a movie is original, but whether it is good.
Hollywood’s Current Recession and Industry Consolidation
Leonard is cautious but hopeful about Los Angeles production rebounding.
His view on the slowdown
- The 2022 production peak was inflated by the streaming arms race.
- Studios and streamers overproduced content while chasing Netflix.
- The pandemic also distorted production patterns.
- The current downturn reflects a correction and tighter economics.
On mergers and consolidation
He is skeptical of major mergers like Paramount and Warner Bros. Discovery, arguing that:
- fewer buyers are bad for competition,
- more debt tends to push studios toward safer, more conventional choices,
- and that hurts a culture business like Hollywood.
He believes recovery will require:
- smarter studio leadership,
- better government policy,
- and more long-term thinking than quarterly earnings pressure.
The Future of Storytelling
Leonard says one of the most exciting trends is the globalization of film and television.
He points to examples like:
- Parasite,
- Squid Game,
- and emerging filmmakers outside the U.S.
He shares a story about teenagers in rural Nigeria who were making strong short films on phones and laptops, and later went on to develop a feature film that premiered at the Berlin Film Festival.
His takeaway
The best and most commercially exciting stories will not necessarily come from Hollywood studios anymore. The future of entertainment is increasingly global, decentralized, and talent-driven.
Key Takeaways
- Hollywood’s script discovery process is inefficient and overly dependent on access.
- The Black List succeeds because it makes hidden talent visible.
- Great writing has real commercial value.
- The film industry often mistakes convention for wisdom.
- Sequels and adaptations are symptoms of risk management, not necessarily creative failure.
- The future of film and TV will likely be more global and less centered on traditional Hollywood gatekeepers.