The Romance Of Liz And Dick

Paramount Pictures is finalizing a deal to develop a feature about the scandalous romance between Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton, as a directing vehicle for Martin Scorsese. The film will be produced by Julie Yorn, Gary Foster and Russ Krasnoff of Krasnoff Foster Productions, and Scorsese through his Paramount-based Sikelia banner. The producers have optioned Furious Love, the book by Sam Kashner and Nancy Schoenberger about the “scandal of the century” that was published by HarperCollins last year. At the same time, the producers have a rights agreement with Burton’s estate, and a pledge of cooperation from his widow, Sally Hay Burton, to make his library available as a resource. The filmmakers have also reached out to the estate of Taylor with the same hopes. A screenwriter will be hired shortly. The Taylor/Burton courtship and dual marriages were the first big paparazzi events of the previous century and almost singlehandedly created the celebrity gossip culture that now thrives on television, in print and online (although its focus is certainly on lesser lights).

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