New Line Acquires Rights to Marquez Novel

Posted on November 29, 2004

New Line Cinema has acquired the rights to Nobel Prize winning author Gabriel Garcia Marquez' novel Love in the Time of Cholera from producer Scott Steindorff and has hired Oscar-winning screenwriter Ronald Harwood (The Pianist) to pen the feature film adaptation. Stone Village's Andrew Molasky along with attorneys Karen Robson and Jim Janowitz negotiated the deal on behalf of Stone Village. Marquez struck a multi-million dollar deal with Steindorff in July for the feature rights and Steindorff in turn took the project to New Line.

First published in 1985, Love in the Time of Cholera traces the Job-like vigil of Florentino Ariza who waits for over half a century to claim the hand of Fermina Daza, the woman he loves.

"This is one of the world's most romantic stories," said New Line executive vp production Mark Ordesky. "It is timeless, and its appeal knows no borders. Scott and I are absolutely committed to attracting the very greatest filmmakers and artists to help bring this great novel to the screen."

Love in the Time of Cholera will be produced by Steindorff through his Stone Village Pictures production company. The film will be executive produced by Chris Law and Dylan Russell, while Scott LaStaiti and Brantley M. Dunaway will serve as co-producers. New Line's production executive vp Mark Ordesky and creative executive Swanna Macnair are overseeing the project for the studio.

"We did the deal with New Line because Mark Ordesky has great instincts and a shared passion for the material," said Steindorff. "New Line was also the best home for this project because it is a place where this movie will get made, not just developed."

Colombian author Marquez has sold millions of books over the course of his career, initially gaining international literary fame with his 1967 novel One Hundred Years of Solitude, which was recently described by Bill Clinton as "the greatest novel in any language since William Faulkner died."

Harwood, who won a Best Adapted Screenplay Oscar in 2003 for his work on Roman Polanski's The Pianist, has also written such films as Cry, The Beloved Country, and an upcoming adaptation of Charles Dickens' Oliver Twist starring Ben Kingsley.



More from Writers Write


Writing Contests
upcoming contests
Write Jobs
find a job
Writing Memes
funny writing-related memes
Stephen King Quotes
quotes from the master
Grammar Tips
improve your writing
Writing Prompts
spark your creativity