One of the nation’s best-selling authors, Giddens Ko (柯景騰), also known as Jiu Ba-dao (九把刀), confirmed yesterday that a major studio in the US has purchased the rights to produce a screenplay based on his work, marking possibly the first time a local author’s story has been adapted into a Hollywood film.
The Killer Who Never Kills, a novel first published in 2005 that sold more than 100,000 copies nationwide, consists of two stories.
One of those stories has been sold to Hollywood, Ko said.
“If I could have a say on who plays the lead role of my novel, I would say Jay Chou (周杰倫), but obviously I am not the one making that decision,” Ko said, referring to the Taiwanese pop singer and actor who plays Seth Rogen’s sidekick in The Green Hornet.
The story sold to Hollywood follows the life of a killer who actually never kills anyone, but instead uses deceit to give the appearance that he has fulfilled his mission.
Ko refused to disclose any details of the deal, citing a confidentiality agreement.
Ko’s noted achievements include writing up to 5,000 words per day and publishing 14 novels in as many months. His prolific career started when he wrote a short story as part of his application to get into a local graduate school. It was then that he discovered his talent for writing.
At the age of 32, Ko has already published 56 novels, many of which have topped the best-seller charts. Some have been adapted for television soap operas, comic books and video games.
He has never experienced “writer’s block,” he said, adding that he thinks writing a novel is a process of talking to himself, a journey he finds “extremely lonely.”
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