More than 400 years after writing “Macbeth,” William Shakespeare has been nominated for a Hollywood award for his early 17th-century classic. “The Tragedy of Macbeth,” director Joel Coen’s adaptation of the Bard’s tragedy, has been named a finalist at the 34th annual USC Libraries Scripter Awards, where the nominations go to both the screenwriter of an adaptation and the original author on which the adaptation is based.On a list unveiled by USC Libraries on Wednesday morning, Shakespeare is joined by three other deceased authors and one who is (probably) still alive but refuses to reveal her (?) real name.

Finalists in the Scripters’ film category are “Dune,” with a screenplay by Eric Roth, Jon Spaihts and Denis Villeneuve from the novel by Frank Herbert, who died in 1986; “The Power of the Dog,” adapted by Jane Campion from the novel by Western writer Thomas Savage, who died in 2003; “Passing,” written by Rebecca Hall from the novel by Nella Larsen, who died in 1964; and “The Lost Daughter,” adapted by Maggie Gyllenhaal from the novel by Elena Ferrante, the pen name for an Italian author who remains steadfastly anonymous.All five films are written or co-written by their directors.

Film adaptations that didn’t receive nominations from the selection committee include “West Side Story,” “Nightmare Alley,” “Drive My Car” and “Cyrano.”In the Scripters’ television category, the finalists were episodes of “Dopesick,” “Maid,” “Station Eleven,” “The Underground Railroad” and “WandaVision.” Barry Jenkins, who was nominated for the “Underground Railroad” episode, was also chosen as recipient of the USC Libraries Literary Achievement Award for works that included 2017 Scripter winner “Moonlight” and 2019 finalist “If Beale Street.

Shakespeare Shares Scripter Award Nomination With Joel Coen for ‘The Tragedy of Macbeth’

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