John Logan to Write Screenplay for ‘Jersey Boys’ Movie

“Jersey Boys,” the jukebox musical about the career of Frankie Valli and his 1960s pop group the Four Seasons, is coming to the big screen, and John Logan will write the screenplay. Logan is known as the screenwriter for films like “Gladiator,” “The Last Samurai,” and his most recent work, Martin Scorsese’s “Hugo.” Logan also has written the upcoming 23rd installment of the James Bond series, “Skyfall.”

The play began previews on Broadway October 4, 2005 and officially opened the following month. The long-running and successful show became the 25th longest running Broadway show when it reached 2,329 performances on June 26, 2011, according to broadwayworld.com. The musical chronicles the unlikely rise to stardom by the group from New Jersey, and prominently features many songs by the Four Seasons. The original Broadway production was nominated for eight Tony Awards and won three, including Best Musical. The subsequent London version of the show, which premiered in 2008, won the Laurence Olivier Award for Best New Musical.

The film adaptation will be produced by Graham King and Tim Headington. The former is known as an Oscar winner for “The Departed,” while the latter is known for producing The Aviator, Rango and the Rum Diary. King’s production company, GK Films, bought the screen rights to “Jersey Boys” back in 2006. Frankie Valli has been announced as an executive producer for the adaptation. In addition to his film work, Logan also has experience working on stage productions. He won a Tony for Best Play in 2010 for “Red,” and also adapted Tim Burton’s “Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street,” for the screen.

In addition to the Broadway and London runs, “Jersey Boys” also has been produced as a North American tour in 2006 as well as a still ongoing tour that began in 2010. Additionally, open-ended run have been held in Toronto, Sydney and Las Vegas.