‘Promising Young Woman’ and ‘Borat 2’ Win Big with Writers Guild

BY SCOTTIE KNOLLIN

”Promising Young Woman” and “Borat Subsequent Moviefilm” took top honors at the 73rd Writers Guild of America Awards. While the annual awards are considered the most prestigious for film writers, its winners are not always good predictors of the eventual Oscar champions. Consider this year: films like “Nomadland”, a frontrunner for the Adapted Screenplay Oscar, “Mank”, and “Minari” were ineligible for the WGA Awards due to the guild’s very particular rules.

Emerald Fennell, writer and director of “Promising Young Woman”, is expected to win the Original Screenplay Oscar following her win with the WGA Award for in the same category. For the Adapted Screenplay win for “Borat Subsequent Moviefilm”, its star, Sacha Baron Cohen, was listed among eight other writers for the sequel’s script. While nominated for the similar Oscar, the comedy film is not expected to win the Academy Award.

In the documentary category, "The Dissident” picked up the prize over “All In: The Fight for Democracy” and “Totally Under Control”.

FULL LIST OF FILM WINNERS:

ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY

PROMISING YOUNG WOMAN
Written by Emerald Fennell
(Focus Features)

ADAPTED SCREENPLAY

BORAT SUBSEQUENT MOVIEFILM
Screenplay by Sacha Baron Cohen, Anthony Hines, Dan Swimer, Peter Baynham, Erica Rivinoja, Dan Mazer, Jena Friedman, Lee Kern
Story by Sacha Baron Cohen, Anthony Hines, Dan Swimer, Nine Pedrad
Based on Characters Created by Sacha Baron Cohen
(Amazon Studios)

DOCUMENTARY SCREENPLAY

THE DISSIDENT
Written by Mark Monroe and Bryan Fogel
(Briarcliff Entertainment)