‘American Fiction’ and ‘Slow Horses’ Take Top Honors at USC Scripter Awards
variety.comCaroline Brew editor Cord Jefferson’s “American Fiction” won outstanding film adaptation at the 36th annual USC Libraries Script Awards on Saturday, while Apple TV+’s “Slow Horses” won in the episodic series category for the second year in a row.
Jefferson and Percival Everett accepted the award for “American Fiction.” In his speech, Jefferson recalled his experience reading Everett’s novel “Erasure” in 2020, which he went on to adapt into “American Fiction.” “It felt like I was reading a book written specifically for me.
It felt like I understood what was going on in these characters in the story on a molecular level,” he said. “It felt like somebody crawled into my brain and put it into words on a page.
It felt like the book was electrified as I was holding it.” Jefferson then reached out to Everett about adapting the novel. After a half-hour conversation, Everett agreed to give Jefferson the rights to the book for free for six months — a rare occurrence in the entertainment industry. “This is not the first time that a book has changed my life.
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