In the film “Sideways,” Paul Giamatti plays Miles, a screenwriter and wannabe novelist wounded by divorce, beaten down by rejection and flat broke.
In other words, Rex Pickett.
“My life was in pretty sad shape in ’98 when I wrote the book,” Pickett said. “I was living basically day to day, trying to pay the rent, I had a 12-year-old car, and I was really just about ready to walk away from the film business.”
Unlike Miles, Pickett actually landed a book deal. The movie adaptation would reinvigorate the careers of two actors, create a boon for the Central Coast wine industry and allow Pickett to spend a little money.
“I have a new car, my rent’s paid every month and will be for the next couple of years, I wear nicer clothes. So financially, things have improved,” he said.
The movie, which was nominated for best picture at this year’s Academy Awards, was a remarkably faithful adaptation of Pickett’s novel. In both, Miles embarks on a wine tasting tour with his womanizing friend, Jack, a washed-up actor about to get married.
The book had been rejected by 15 publishers when Pickett’s agent sent the manuscript to Alexander Payne, who said he wanted to adapt it for the screen.
The unpublished book was eventually optioned by Fox Searchlight for $12,500. Meanwhile, as Payne began work on his next film, “About Schmidt,” St. Martin’s agreed to publish the book, offering Pickett a small $5,000 advance.
After the book was published in June, St. Martin’s decided not to market it, forcing Pickett to pay for his own expenses on book signings.
When the movie came out in October, critics loved it, and Fox Searchlight promoted it heavily. Pickett, 52, would go on to make six figures from book royalties and a percentage of the movie’s budget–plus get a better book deal.
He sometimes feels slighted by the movie’s actors and producer who, he said, don’t give him credit for creating the characters that put them back in the limelight. But, Pickett said, “if it hadn’t been for the movie, the book probably would have died at a thousand copies.”
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Edited by Cara DiPasquale ([email protected]) and Kris Karnopp ([email protected])