Simon & Schuster Partners with The Black List, Adds 6,000+ Books for Film and TV Adaptation Discovery

Simon & Schuster adds over 6,000 titles to The Black List platform, helping film and TV creators discover new adaptation opportunities.
on Jun 19, 2026

In a significant move that further strengthens the connection between publishing and Hollywood, Simon & Schuster has partnered with The Black List to make more than 6,000 titles from its backlist catalog available through the platform's searchable database.

The collaboration is designed to help film and television professionals discover books with adaptation potential, creating new pathways for authors and publishers to bring stories from page to screen.

Expanding Discovery for Screen Adaptations

Founded in 2005, The Black List began as an annual survey highlighting Hollywood's most admired unproduced screenplays. Over the years, it has evolved into one of the entertainment industry's most influential discovery platforms, connecting writers, producers, executives and creative talent.

In 2024, the platform expanded its focus beyond screenplays and unpublished manuscripts to include books, opening new opportunities for publishers and authors seeking adaptation deals.

Today, The Black List serves a community of more than 7,000 vetted industry professionals, making it a valuable marketplace for identifying stories with cinematic and television potential.

Thousands of Simon & Schuster Titles Now Searchable

Under the new partnership, industry users can explore thousands of Simon & Schuster titles across major imprints, including:

• Scribner
• Atria Books
• Gallery Books
• Avid Reader Press
• Saga Press
• Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers

The database allows users to search by title, author, genre and other key metadata. Simon & Schuster has also provided additional information such as cover artwork, imprint details and pitch descriptions to help producers and executives evaluate projects more efficiently.

Bridging Publishing and Hollywood

Commenting on the partnership, Franklin Leonard, Founder and CEO of The Black List, emphasized the importance of improving book discovery within the entertainment industry.

"Great books have long been a source of exceptional screen stories, but finding them efficiently remains a challenge," Leonard said. He noted that the initiative places Simon & Schuster's extensive catalog directly in front of thousands of filmmakers, producers and executives actively searching for their next adaptation project.

For Simon & Schuster, the collaboration represents a strategic effort to expand opportunities for its authors.

Lesley Collins, the publisher's Domestic Rights Manager and Film & TV Liaison, said the partnership will help connect the company's rich catalog with leading creators and decision-makers in film and television, ultimately increasing the chances of bringing more books to the screen.

A Growing Demand for Book Adaptations

The partnership comes at a time when streaming platforms and studios are increasingly turning to books for original content. Publishers have become key sources of intellectual property for film and television development, with successful adaptations often driving renewed interest and sales for the original books.

Recent screen adaptations of Simon & Schuster titles include:

• The Last Thing He Told Me by Laura Dave (Apple TV+)
• The Summer I Turned Pretty by Jenny Han (Prime Video)
• The Running Man by Stephen King (Paramount Pictures)

These projects demonstrate the growing value of publishing catalogs as a source of stories capable of reaching global audiences across multiple formats.

What This Means for Authors

For authors within Simon & Schuster's extensive backlist, the partnership could significantly increase visibility among producers, screenwriters and studio executives. By making thousands of titles easier to discover, the initiative has the potential to generate new adaptation deals and introduce established books to entirely new audiences.

As the boundaries between publishing, streaming and entertainment continue to blur, collaborations like this highlight the increasing importance of rights management and content discovery in shaping the future of storytelling.

With more than 6,000 books now accessible to Hollywood decision-makers through The Black List, Simon & Schuster is positioning its catalog at the center of the growing book-to-screen adaptation ecosystem.