10 Best Films Made From Black List Screenplays
9. The Wrestler
A touching tale of former pro-wrestler Randy ‘The Ram’ Robinson (played by Mickey Rourke) who returns to the game with a rematch fight between him and his old archenemy, The Wrestler appeared on the 2007 Black List with just five mentions – a relatively low ranking on that year’s list which was topped by Danny Strong’s script for critically acclaimed TV movie Recount about the 2000 presidential elections.
Penned by Robert Siegel, former editor in chief of satirical news website The Onion, the film boasted a career best performance from Rourke that cemented the actor’s Hollywood comeback and earned him a Best Actor nomination at the 2009 Academy Awards.
Funnily enough, king of overacting Nicolas Cage was originally on board to play the role of Randy ‘The Ram’ Robinson but dropped out and conceded the role to Rourke, director Darren Aronofsky’s ideal choice for the role – a twist of fate that was probably the best outcome for the film.