Matt Billingsly
Screenwriter
Writer. Reader. Researcher. Enthusiast.
About
Matt Billingsly studied writing and directing at USC’s School of Cinema-Television and graduated magna cum laude.Specializing in true stories and book adaptations, his original screenplay “Code Name Veil,” about America’s involvement in Lebanon, made Franklin Leonard’s “The Black List” (for best unproduced screenplays).After setting up the script at Black Label Media with Michael Cuesta to direct and Ansel Elgort to star, he adapted Stephen Witt’s nonfiction bestseller, “How Music Got Free,” a behind the scenes look at how mp3s and piracy decimated the music industry.He also wrote “The Trail of Tears,” an account of the removal of the Cherokee from their land, for producer Hunt Lowry (“Last of the Mohicans,” “Donnie Darko,” “A Time to Kill”).He rewrote the modern-day Vietnam drama “The Last Tour” for Oliver Stone to direct. After Oliver dropped out, his draft attracted the attention of Spike Lee, who directed the film for Netflix. Retitled “Da 5 Bloods,” it was released to critical acclaim.Matt also adapted Anjan Sundaram’s book, “Stringer: A Reporter’s Journey Through the Congo,” with Manish Dayal set to star and Meera Menon to direct, and Artemis Joukowsky’s book “Defying the Nazis: The Sharps’ War,” a Holocaust drama.Branching into TV, he adapted Robert Harris’s bestselling thriller “The Fear Index” for Left Bank Pictures and Sky TV. Working with Oliver Stone, he was a staff writer on the legal drama series “Guantanamo” for Showtime and producer Alexandra Milchan.He adapted Hampton Sides’ bestseller “On Desperate Ground” as a TV miniseries with Cinetic Media, and “The Remaining” by J.D. Molles for Lucas Foster and ANVL Entertainment.Two original scripts are currently in development. "Witness One" is set up with Mandalay Entertainment producing, and "The First Starfighters" is set up with Escape Artists.
Contact
If you're looking for a writer for a film or TV project, please reach out to my representation at:Industry Entertainment
Sara Bottfeld
Andrew Deane
Tel: 323-954-9000The Gersh Agency
Abram Nalibotsky
Mark Hartogsohn
Shan Ray
Tel: 310-274-6611Behr Abramson Levy
Howard Abramson
Jennifer Levy
Tel: 310-556-9200