We’ll be honest, the only thing we know about the musical “Jersey Boys: The Story of Frankie Valli & The Four Seasons” is thanks to a scene in this summer’s “The Other Guys” where Steve Coogan bribes Will Ferrell and Mark Wahlberg with tickets to the show, and they later come back to report that it was “delightful.” And they aren’t the only ones to think so.
Since opening in 2005, the Broadway musical has racked up $1 billion in ticket sales worldwide, won four Tony Awards and a Grammy. So it’s no surprise then that the film rights spurred a huge bidding war among film producers to bring it to the big screen. Well, a winner has emerged with Graham King putting up seven figures to snag the rights.
And really, we can’t blame him. Featuring the music and lyrics of the group’s standards, including “Sherry,” “Big Girls Don’t Cry,” “Rag Doll,” “Oh What A Night,” and “Can’t Take My Eyes Off of You,” the thing is practically guaranteed to make “Mamma Mia!” sized money.
Indeed, studios definitely know the box office potential of musicals with well-known songs. Green Day’s “American Idiot” is in development and a musical based on the songs by The Beach Boys was recently picked up by Fox 2000. No word on a director or production timelines, but you can bet this is on the top of the list for GK Films. [Deadline]