Discworld Author Prepares for Battle

“Movies are a sore point,” noted fantasy author told me in an interview in 2002. “There’s always things in development heck.”

Nearly a decade later, Practchett’s “development heck” seemed to have dropped to a whole new level when the author, who is famously battling early onset Alzheimer’s disease, prepares for a very different battle. From The Telegraph:

The 63-year-old novelist is suing Paul Bamborough and Camel Productions, who had an option on film rights for the fantasy. Sir Terry argues that the rights ran out and is seeking a legal declaration to that effect.

If he is successful, it would open the way for another company to make a film based on Mort, the fourth title in his highly successful Discworld series.

In the 1990s, Practchett was the bestselling author in the United Kingdom. More than 65 million copies of his books are in print.