Found a good candidate for a book-to-screenplay project. I suggested a 50-50 split of the proceeds but the author is saying 75-25 because it is their story. I would probably be doing the marketing myself due to the contacts I have in the industry. What is the normal split for this kind of project?
Screenwriting : What is a good split for a book to film? by Bob Johnson
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Usually there's no split. You can option the book, and there's a small option fee, and in the option agreement it will have the purchase price. You go write the script and sell it. In order to buy the script the producer or studio would buy out the option agreement (paying off the author), and also buy the script (paying you). If you choose to do a split, that's something you can do. The more important question is this: is the author going to have any input in the script. That'll be a *$^#@! nightmare.
From the adaptations I've seen, I'd say 50/50 is fair.
If you want a great example of a successful adaptation, check out The Last of Us and Game of Thrones on HBO or 1922 on Netflix. They don't insult the audience for those who have read the book or played the video game in my opinion.
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The book is the book. The screenplay is the screenplay. The farmer doesn’t get paid for the steak I eat.
If the author wants to be a producer, they pay you.
In reality I just wouldn’t do it.
Say you spend a year working your ass off. Then Universal Studios buys the book rights. You own 50% of nothing. If the book isn’t good enough to be purchase by Universal then a screenplay version (no matter how much of a genius you are), will not be purchased by Universal.
Or the more traditional way, you option the book. Agree on how much the authour gets if the screenplay sells. Then you get the rights granted to you for a short time.