Ask the Coach: Who Owns the Sequel Rights to My Script? – On Script Mag

Welcome to the latest installment of my “Ask the Coach” column on Script Mag!
 

This month’s question is about who owns sequel rights to your screenplay and why adding an entertainment lawyer to your team is beneficial when negotiating screenwriting contracts.

“I’m writing a script which has obvious sequel potential. If I am fortunate enough to sell the script, (assuming boilerplate contract) who will own the rights to the sequel, me or the studio? Asked in another way, when I sell the script, am I selling the brand as well? I have several script projects with sequel potential, so this is a big question for me.”

Such an intriguing question, and I’m sure one many writers share. Since this is ultimately a question for an entertainment lawyer, I reached out to Michael Saleman of www.movielaw.net for his expertise. To a degree, the answer about how these types of rights work can be dependent on a writer’s leverage.  [more…]

 

Whether you’re wondering about sequel rights or making sure you’re signing a good option agreement for a single script, having a lawyer on your writing team is an excellent move.

 

Read the article on Script Mag here:
Ask the Coach: Who Owns the Sequel Rights to My Script?
 
 
 
If you’ve got writing questions, please send them my way!
I’d love to answer them for you in my column.
 
Photo by Scott Graham on Unsplash