20 Mind-Blowing Facts You Didn't Know About Zodiac (2007)

The business of copyright is a very tricky one to navigate, particularly when it comes to movie rights and their respective source material. At this stage, most people are aware of the difficulties that movie studios can face, thanks in part to the very public issues Marvel have had with Fox and Sony. So, it comes as no surprise that the story of the Zodiac Killer would face some form of struggle.

The 2007 film is based on the writings of Robert Graysmith, portrayed by Jake Gyllenhaal. Graysmith had dedicated his entire life to solving the mystery of the serial killer and documented his findings in great detail in his first book. The cartoonist-turned-novelist was largely involved in the on-screen adaptation and upon reading the script remarked that he understood why his wife had left him.

After the sucess of Dirty Harry, mixed with public calls for a less sensationalised feature, studios had tried for years to turn Graysmith's work into a feature. Yet for Phoenix Pictures, that was only made possible after the previous option holders let it lapse in 2002. Disney had optioned the author's book early on, but had no success when it came to putting anything together.