The Social

The crew of "The Social Network," the David Fincher-directed retelling of Facebook's earliest days, is headed to film in the Boston area soon with a widely reported start date of October 19.

Rumors on Web forums indicate that the Harvard Square neighborhood of Cambridge, Mass.--the eponymous university's epicenter--will be the backdrop for some scenes involving actor Jesse Eisenberg, who plays Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg. Eisenberg himself has been quoted as saying that the movie will actually be filming on Harvard's campus, something that the university would not confirm.

Facebook was founded in a dorm at Harvard when Zuckerberg was a sophomore there; he later dropped out to run the site full-time. "The Social Network" script was based on writer Ben Mezrich's "The Accidental Billionaires," an unauthorized tale of Facebook's origins that doesn't portray Zuckerberg in the most positive manner.

Boston.com reported Thursday that a Somerville pub called the Thirsty Scholar has confirmed that it'll be used as a filming location, but couldn't confirm what everybody wants to know--whether pop star Justin Timberlake, who plays early Facebook exec Sean Parker, will be on-set.

Here's the catch. I've read the Aaron Sorkin-penned script for "The Social Network"--granted, it's a draft with a May 2009 date on it, so who knows what has changed--and Sean Parker doesn't even appear in any Boston scenes. Sorry, Boston.

Warning: Mild spoilers ahead about the plot and structure of "The Social Network."

I have my hands on a copy of "The Social Network," the screenplay that "West Wing" creator Aaron Sorkin has adapted from "The Accidental Billionaires"--author Ben Mezrich's tawdry tale of Facebook's origins that was released last week. Though I'm not gushing over it the way script blogger Carson Reeves did when he read it, I think it's a decent screenplay. With a good cast and production team, this movie might be quite enjoyable.

This could be a concern for Facebook. I'm guessing the company is already far enough along so that it doesn't have to worry about negative onscreen portrayals of its founder hurting its chances of a successful IPO, but the screenplay is smart and nasty enough--more so than the book it's based on--that it could raise PR issues regardless.

"The Social Network" follows the plot of "Accidental Billionaires" pretty precisely, with the most notable deviation being that there is an increased focus on Zuckerberg himself--Facebook co-founder Eduardo Saverin, who was Mezrich's main source for the book (he didn't talk to Zuckerberg), takes a bit of a back burner. But it's still the same narrative about Mark Zuckerberg founding Facebook as an undergraduate at Harvard, and then facing opposition both internally (from Saverin) and externally (from Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss, the twin co-founders of would-be Facebook rival ConnectU).

The dialogue--remember, Mezrich's book is dialogue-light--is snappy and witty, with a fast-paced, back-and-forth feel to it that "West Wing" fans will recognize as very Sorkin-esque. On paper, though, it comes across as much more slick and polished than real-life dialogue would have been (and it's up to the skills of the actors to ensure that this doesn't translate to onscreen cheesiness). And it treats the founding of Facebook with more gravitas than "Accidental Billionaires" does: scenes of the social network's early days at Harvard are interspersed with snippets from later court depositions between Zuckerberg and Saverin, as well as Zuckerberg and the ConnectU founders.

But the most notable difference is that, perhaps because of the infusion of dialogue, Zuckerberg is a significantly more dislikeable character than he is in the book, where he's painted as simply enigmatic and a little detached. In the screenplay, he's far more class-conscious and his lines are typically weighted with snarky arrogance. The question of whether Zuckerberg was duping the ConnectU founders by working on Facebook while ostensibly in their employ is addressed much more decisively than in the book--and it's not favorable to Zuckerberg.

At the end, he's allowed a little bit of a denouement, and who knows what will happen in script revisions. But for now, I can see why an entertainment industry source said that the producers have been hoping to cast an audience-friendly young actor. The onscreen version of Zuckerberg could easily come across as utterly obnoxious.

Actually, to put it bluntly, none of the main characters are all that sympathetic. The Winklevoss twins come across as aggressive and vindictive; Saverin is neurotic and money-obsessed; onetime Facebook exec Sean Parker is a scheming lush; and then-Harvard president Larry Summers, who has a small role, is pretty much just a blowhard. That probably doesn't bode well for the producers' attempt to actually film parts of the movie on Harvard's campus, since I'm fairly sure that a prestigious university doesn't want to be depicted onscreen as a hub for serious douchebaggery.

When I read "The Accidental Billionaires," I predicted that it was safely fluffy enough that Facebook (and Zuckerberg) probably wouldn't have much of a problem with it. But the screenplay for "The Social Network" is edgier and meaner. At one point, during a fired-up moment for the ConnectU guys, Cameron Winklevoss says of Zuckerberg, "Let's f***ing gut that little nerd!" And when Zuckerberg is told by the Winklevosses' lawyer that the twins come from a family worth hundreds of millions of dollars, Zuckerberg retorts with, "Or roughly the amount I paid in income tax last year."

Oh, snap.

On a totally different note: Does "The Social Network" botch it when it comes to discussions of technology, venture capital, and Web development? Not really. I sent a few lines of dialogue depicting a Harvard computer science class to an engineer friend who said that it was fairly spot-on. Of course, the dialogue in the court deposition scenes is a little more exciting than it probably was in real life. But let's face it: this is Hollywood.

And the awesomest-slash-cheesiest line? In my opinion, the award goes to Tyler Winklevoss in yet another scene where he and Cameron are talking about how to get back at Zuckerberg: "I'm six-five, 220 pounds, and there are two of me."

Whoa! Blogger Carson Reeves of Scriptshadow got his hands on the screenplay for "The Social Network," the adaptation of Ben Mezrich's semi-salacious Facebook tell-all "The Accidental Billionaires," and he gives it a thumbs-up.

More specifically, he said that the 162-page script, penned by "West Wing" creator Aaron Sorkin, "really resonated with me" and categorized it as "impressive." For those of us who have been following the development of the (unauthorized) Facebook tell-all, which hits bookstores on Tuesday, and its impending screen adaptation, this is a bit of a surprise.

I've read "The Accidental Billionaires." It is, more or less, a fluffy drunken romp around Harvard Yard and Silicon Valley--sort of like beach reading for dudes. But it's not dialogue-heavy, which means that Sorkin had some work cut out for him. If Reeves' review is any indication, the dialogue is good. With "Fight Club" director David Fincher reportedly close to signing on, and industry sources whispering that the roster of actors being considered for the role of Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg includes hot young stars like Michael Cera and Shia LaBeouf, it's clear that Hollywood is putting muscle behind "The Social Network."

Should Facebook be worried? I'm not sure. Company representatives have been quick to make an analogy between Mezrich's "Accidental Billionaires" and Danielle Steele, and my impression of the book is that it is too silly and not damning enough to have any negative impact on Zuckerberg or Facebook. But if the movie adaptation turns out to be high-quality filmmaking, it won't be so easy for Facebook to wave off what it claims are untrue allegations about the social network's early days. In other words, audiences might be more likely to believe it.

From what it sounds like, Napster co-founder and early Facebook exec Sean Parker has an even bigger role in the screenplay than he does in the book. In "Accidental Billionaires," Parker is said to have a vendetta against Sequoia Capital investor Michael Moritz; it sounds like that's sticking around in the screenplay.

"I loved Sean Parker in this script," Reeves wrote. "Sorkin gives Parker this quirky little obsession with an old business associate who f***ed him over during his Napster days. Parker has a stalker-like obsession with getting back at him and brings up his revenge plans at every opportunity. Not only is it hilarious, but it reveals Parker's character."

That could get interesting.

(Credit: Doubleday)

David Fincher is in "advanced talks" to direct the Columbia Pictures movie about the origins of Facebook, according to Variety.

The movie, based on Ben Mezrich's upcoming "The Accidental Billionaires," was written by "The West Wing" creator Aaron Sorkin. It's being produced, Variety reported Tuesday, by Scott Rudin and Michael De Luca along with Dana Brunetti and actor Kevin Spacey. Variety said the movie is called "The Social Network." We hear this is a very preliminary working title. (It, obviously, could also be called "Accidental Billionaires.")

Fincher's past directorial work includes "Fight Club," "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button," and "Panic Room."

An entertainment industry source tells CNET News that early casting searches are under way and that the list of young actors being eyeballed to play Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg includes both Michael Cera ("Superbad," "Arrested Development") and Shia LaBeouf ("Transformers"). They aren't the only ones, and it's not clear whether either of those two in-demand actors would want to take a turn away from comedies (Cera) or action movies (LaBeouf) to play Zuckerberg.

Cera is, according to the source, a top choice because audiences find him particularly likable. Rumors about the plot of the book "Accidental Billionaires" hint that Zuckerberg is going to be portrayed rather unfavorably--basically, as an obnoxious nerd--and obnoxious nerds are not the world's biggest box-office sell. Cera could make the part a little bit more sympathetic.

But in LaBeouf's favor, I saw "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen" last night, and the guy really does sound a lot like Zuckerberg.

Meanwhile, Facebook itself reportedly isn't thrilled. The social network consistently hasn't commented publicly about "Accidental Billionaires" and is said to have warned employees not to talk to anyone affiliated with the movie.

I won't believe it for sure until we see grainy paparazzi shots of actor Michael Cera walking around on a movie set in a North Face fleece and Adidas flip-flops, but it looks like things are moving forward on the film based on the early days of Facebook.

And, Business Insider hears, Facebook may be warning former employees not to talk to people involved with the making of the movie.

This is consistent with something I heard last fall from an early Facebook employee who is no longer with the company. This former Facebooker said the company had told the movie's team that it was unwilling to cooperate in the event that the film was based on a salacious new tell-all book about Facebook--and that indeed appears to be the case.

The movie, as you may recall, is spearheaded by West Wing creator Aaron Sorkin and is reportedly based on a book by Bringing Down the House author Ben Mezrich, known for scandalous tales of ambition and temptation set at elite universities. That's a fine match for Facebook, which was founded by Mark Zuckerberg and some of his friends while they were all undergraduates at Harvard.

But when screenshots of Mezrich's book proposal were leaked to the Web last year, it became evident that Zuckerberg wasn't going to be painted in the best light, and also that there may be a gray area in the fact-checking department. The proposal mentions, for example, a scene in which Zuckerberg dines on exotic food on the yacht belonging to the CEO of Sun Microsystems; Scott McNealy, who would have been CEO of Sun at the time, openly professes to never having owned a boat.

Sounding like a darker and more cutthroat Revenge of the Nerds, the proposal talks about how Zuckerberg created Facebook so he could hook up with more girls--something that Facebook insiders scoff at because Zuckerberg has had the same girlfriend since before he built Facebook--and climbed to the top of Harvard's social ladder.

Mezrich's book is reportedly hitting stores this fall. There isn't yet a timeline on Sorkin's movie adaptation that we know of.

Ben Mezrich, the author whose book Bringing Down The House inspired this summer's gambling flick 21, has confirmed to the Boston Herald that he's writing a book about Facebook's origins and that West Wing creator Aaron Sorkin is going to turn it into a movie.

As you may recall, part of a proposal for the book, tentatively titled Face Off, was leaked to gossip blog Gawker and launched a mini-firestorm because of some supposed inaccuracies--not to mention the fact that it doesn't look like the book will portray Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg in the most positive light. It implied that the book, reportedly worth a seven-figure advance, would depict Zuckerberg as a hard-partying social climber who founded Facebook in his undergraduate days at Harvard University so that he could hook up with more girls.

In the Herald interview, Mezrich obliquely skirted the question of the leaked proposal, neither confirming nor denying its accuracy. "What was in Gawker--that was not all truth. That's not what the book is about...What is Gawker even doing writing something about me?"

What's funny is that rumors had been swirling that the book, and possibly the movie, were in limbo. As the Herald points out, Zuckerberg has not been speaking with Mezrich about the book. From what we've heard, Facebook isn't particularly thrilled about it (company representatives were not immediately available for comment) and that they aren't planning to deal with Mezrich at all. The author has come under occasional fire for stretching the truth, after all; and as scandal-fueled Ivy League rags-to-riches stories are his specialty, one can imagine some of the plotlines (even if the alleged proposal turns out to be a red herring). Facebook's legal department can be aggressive, too.

But if Mezrich is talking to the press about the as-yet untitled book (we're guessing it's not going to be called Face Off), it's on--which means that actor Michael Cera might want to start brushing up on his knowledge of the "social graph." Really, this could be quite the breakthrough for the former Arrested Development and Juno star.

Fortune editor David Kirkpatrick is also working on a book about Facebook, not to be confused with Mezrich's. That one, titled The Facebook Effect, promises to be a much more buttoned-up, businesslike affair.

If an anonymous source is correct, the confirmed screenplay-in-the-works about Facebook's origins by West Wing creator Aaron Sorkin is tied to a forthcoming book about the social network by Bringing Down The House author Ben Mezrich.

Independent Harvard alumni publication 02138 reported on Friday that the film rights to Mezrich's book had been acquired by Sony Pictures Entertainment and producer Scott Rubin, who have been confirmed as the backers of Sorkin's screenplay.

Here's the backstory: A partial book proposal from Mezrich, who has come under scrutiny for allegedly exaggerating details in his nonfiction works, leaked to a gossip blog this spring.

With a working title of Face Off, the plot concerns Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg's soured relationship with early Facebook executive Eduardo Saverin, who appears to have been in close contact with Mezrich for the book, while they were both undergraduates at Harvard. The proposal described Zuckerberg and Saverin getting caught up in Silicon Valley excess, partying like celebrities all over the world, until a showdown between them turned ugly.

Sources close to Zuckerberg's Harvard days have indicated to CNET News that the scant detail available in the book proposal is of questionable veracity; one went so far as to say the content contained "some real bull****." At the time, it wasn't even clear that the book proposal was legitimate, since neither Mezrich nor his publisher, Doubleday, are willing to confirm it, but sources who spoke to 02138 seem to indicate that it's a done deal.

02138 has occasionally faced off with Facebook: last year, the magazine published a scathing piece about Zuckerberg that exposed extensive personal details about the young founder's life, leading to a brief legal spat.

In other news, readers of gossip blog Valleywag seem to agree that Mark Zuckerberg should be played onscreen by Arrested Development star Michael Cera.

(Credit: Facebook)

If a recently created group on Facebook is to be believed, entertainment stalwart Aaron Sorkin--creator of The West Wing and A Few Good Men--is working on penning a movie for Sony and producer Scott Rudin about the origins of Facebook. Someone claiming to be Sorkin's researcher created the group so that he can learn more about the site, and several hundred Facebook members have already joined.

So maybe it's real and maybe it isn't real. But let's start asking the really important questions: which young actor should play founder Mark Zuckerberg?

Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg

(Credit: SXSWi)

I say Jason Schwartzman. He's slight and prone to geeky roles, he's already played Ringo Starr and Louis XIV, and it can't be that hard for him to dye his hair blond and wax philosophical about the "social graph." Alternate: Arrested Development star Michael Cera, who already has the blond hair and can play geeks like nobody's business. (Thanks to Elliot Schimel for that suggestion.)

Give me a few more hours and I'll think of some hunky hottie who could play both Winklevoss twins, Parent Trap-style.

This does not appear to be related to Face Off, a rumored forthcoming novel from Bringing Down The House author Ben Mezrich that he and his publisher still refuse to confirm. That book, known only by a few pages of a proposal that leaked to gossip blog Gawker, is reportedly a juicy tell-all that doesn't exactly paint Zuckerberg in the fairest of colors.