Everett’s ‘Thing’

It is a naive assumption that bad films begin life as bad scripts (“Frailty, Thy Name is Director,” by Kenneth Turan, April 9). In postulating about why good directors “choose” weak screenplays, Turan has overlooked an increasingly frequent cause of script-deterioration: the egocentric actor.

The original screenplay for “The Next Best Thing,” which Turan lashes, was a highly regarded script that several studios wanted to buy; however, the version that John Schlesinger signed on to direct was not the version that made it to the screen. Although uncredited, Rupert Everett was allowed to rewrite the screenplay, bragging loudly to any journalist who would listen that he had “improved” it. I think the result speaks for itself.

LESLIE DIXON

Producer, “The Next Best Thing”

Beverly Hills