8 Sneaky Ways A Movie Got Greenlit

By Padraig Cotter / November 26, 2015

It seems to be more difficult than ever to get a film made in Hollywood; chances are if it isn't a sequel, reboot or remake then it just won€™t get greenlit. As production budgets climb ever higher the studios want to stick - understandably - to movies that are almost guaranteed to make a profit, which sadly doesn€™t leave much room for new talent or original ideas to push through.

So now filmmakers need to be a little more creative when it comes to selling their ideas, with the internet appearing to be the place to do it - every other day a new film is announced that was based on a video that went viral, a piece of fan fiction or even some artwork.

This is encouraging as it shows that great ideas can always rise to the surface, regardless of their origins. Or, in the case of Grumpy Cat's Worst Chrismas Ever, some not so great ideas.

But that's not the only way to push a film through. The following are some examples of movies €“ or upcoming movies - that were able to bypass traditional routes, and earn themselves that much sought after greenlight without having to suffer through years of painful rejection.

8. Snakes On A Plane Was Based On A Joke Pitch

Although Snakes On A Plane was credited to three(!) different writers, there€™s a weirdly credible rumour about its origins that refuses to go away. The story goes that some studio executives were joking around, actively pitching each other the worst possible idea for a movie. One of them pitched a ridiculous idea about snakes attacking people on an airplane, with the title Snakes On A Plane being the punchline. The idea €“ stupid as it was €“ struck a chord and a script for the film was commissioned. It eventually attracted Samuel L. Jackson based on the title alone (he's on record as saying he didn't even read the script when he agreed to star). Once the movie was announced it became an instant viral favourite, with memes and parody videos popping up for it everywhere. In the end this didn€™t translate to making Snakes On A Plane a huge hit, with the fact that it was kind of crap probably not helping either. But for a movie based around an office gag, it travelled further than most.