Something special with this post. I was going to review Prince of Persia and open with the disclaimer, “I’m friendly with one of the writers,” but then figured, ‘Why not just see if he’s willing to chat about the process (and a few other things)?
He said yes, so here’s a conversation with one of the writers of Prince of Persia, Doug Miro. Enjoy.
MALIK: So what’s the process like to get John August, Jerry Bruckenheimer, and Disney to sign off and say ‘this is the take we’re going to go with for this movie’?
DOUG: Well, for better or worse – and like many Hollywood movies – those sign-offs sort of happened in stages. Jordan Mechner, who created the original PRINCE OF PERSIA video game, sold the project to Jerry and Disney with John August’s help. Jordan wrote the first draft, translating some of the major story points from the game to script. So he came up with the first ‘take’. Jordan deserves a lot of credit because he smartly saw the movie as something very separate from the game – and that approach informed a lot of what followed. The writer/director, Boaz Yakin, followed, added a couple important story points about Dastan’s character and bolstered the first act.
When we came on, Disney and Jerry were fairly satisfied with the first act and that’s about it – there wasn’t really a movie there yet – or at least the kind of big summer action movie it needed to be. We believed they had the makings of one – and with the right work it could have all the elements, but it seemed like this was the movie’s last shot to get greenlit. So a big part of our ‘take’ and subsequent work focused on how to turn it into a big summer movie. We came up with a new second act and several story modifications for the first and third act. We expanded the scale and scope of the story – adding multiple locations, all new action sequences a new, scarier villain and comic relief in the form of a new character – the wily con-man Sheikh Amar. We also worked on the romance between Dastan and the Princess and Dastan’s story itself. We reworked the structure so that all of these disparate elements – action, romance, comedy, scale was held together by the rise of a heroic main character – and also built to a fitting conclusion. Initially, only Jerry’s producers Mike Stenson and Chad Oman, who do most of the development on his projects, had to approve our ‘take’. Then they let us go write. When we came back with that draft, the studio gave the movie a green light. So along the way, there were a lot of takes, a lot of ideas for how to approach the material. Being from Detroit, I imagine its a bit like designing a new car. There are a lot of phases, a lot of compromise and you hope you don’t get an Edsel.
MALIK: How familiar were you with Prince of Persia before this job? Personally I know it started as a game but that’s about it.
DOUG: We knew of the game, but had never played it. When we did, we were hooked – particularly with the idea of translating it to a movie. We saw it as a chance to do an epic period movie but with enough excitement and supernatural elements to keep the studio from balking.
MALIK: You were on the set correct? What was that like in general, and specifically as a writer? Were you constantly interacting with (Mike) Newell or Jake (Gyllenhall)?
DOUG: Yes, we were on the set every day. Because it was shot out of town – in Morrocco and London - and we both have families – Carlo, my writing partner, and I took turns covering. It was incredible – because Jerry and Mike Newell are very generous – and trusted us – we were involved in so many parts of the process a writer doesn’t normally get to see. We did some writing – mostly new action sequences. We were there with second unit overseeing the action a lot of the time, even designing stunts. We were talking to Mike about a scene – what were the important moments, lines etc. And yes, a lot of time with Jake discussing his character. Initially we worked with him finding ways to make the character more dynamic, clever and funny. Later, we were with him all the time on second unit. He did a lot of his own stunts and was really interested in the action – and I think came to trust our take on that stuff – so we would be there whenever he was, talking him through it. The hardest part was being away from my family – and the heat. We had one day in Morocco where it was 132 degrees!
MALIK: With a project of this magnitude, I imagine there were a lot of ‘hands in the pot’. How do you deal with that creatively?
DOUG: You become good at finding a creative compromise. It can be difficult and you often have to swallow your pride, lay low. But you also have to have a point of view and the confidence to express it. And then when it comes to writing, you have to let your imagination work within the confines of the problem, which is its own skill – a different muscle altogether from imagining from scratch. There is a certain joy in a good, creative solution.
MALIK: Pitch me as John Q. TicketBuyer (someone who has never heard of even the game) – why should I see Prince of Persia?
DOUG: Well, in addition to being a lot of fun – full of action, humor and great special effects like all these movies should be, it’s also a great story – a fun ride full of twists and turns. And most importantly, it’s pretty emotional. It’s a story about a young prince, Dastan, dealing with the murder of his father – which he’s being wrongly accused of committing. Dastan was adopted off the streets as a kid, never quite fit in with his princely brothers and is a bit immature. His father believes he’s capable of greatness and challenges Dastan to prove him right – just before he’s murdered. Wrestling with all that, Dastan goes on an epic journey with a princess, Tamina, who’s very different from him and doesn’t trust him – but we sense she’s the right person to help him. And over the course of their journey – through one wild location after another – desert, mountain, ostrich racing track – they actually help each other, providing a great romance. At the end, Dastan grows into the man his father hoped him to be. Guess that’s not the shortest or pithiest pitch, but there you go.
MALIK: (laughing) Works for me. My last short film got a little buzz and the ‘anonymous Internet critic’ let me have it. In this day and age where anyone out there can rip your work to shreds, have you reached the point yet where you can’t Google your own work? I can only imagine what it must be like on a project like this…
DOUG: No. But getting there. These movies – and Jerry’s in particular – are notorious for getting horrible reviews – and for some reason the screenwriters and the script get a lot of the blame. They will compliment one character and give the actor the credit, then deride another and blame it on the writer. It makes no sense. Some critics seem to have no idea what part a script plays in the process – or frankly don’t seem that interested in the process at all. Otherwise they’d have a better idea how hard it is to make a movie like this and get it all to work.
That said, this movie seems to have inspired a wildly diverse group of reviews, which I guess is a good sign. I think the reviewers who take it for what it is like it. But if a reviewer – or anyone – goes in expecting something that will forever change cinema as we know it, they are bound to be disappointed.
MALIK: Were there any specific movies you used as a reference point for Prince of Persia?
DOUG: Yes, Raiders of the Lost Ark. Always Raiders. Then after that, Lawrence of Arabia and It Happened One Night.
MALIK: It Happened One Night? I would have never guessed, very interesting. What do you have planned next?
DOUG: We’re working on National Treasure 3 for Bruckheimer.
MALIK: Congratulations! We all were inspired by different things: what brought you to screenwriting?
DOUG: I loved writing but was never good enough to be a novelist – was more of a storyteller. And I always had a very visual imagination. The two come together in screenwriting.
MALIK: How about your path to USC?
DOUG: I wanted to go somewhere I could learn the basics of screenwriting – that took a very practical approach to it. I’m generally skeptical of writing instruction but I got their philosophy – GSP gives you basic tools, really treats it as a craft – and focuses on reading and analysis – which to me are the best ways to become a good writer. I believed those things would help me get started and give me a solid foundation I could always fall back on – and I still do, to this day. Sequences. Second act turning point. Gotta love it.
MALIK: Yes sir! Do you have directing ambitions?
DOUG: All writers do – and we all think we’d be better than most directors. And all directors think they’d be better writers than most writers. The reality is that I probably wouldn’t be great at it – I’m a bit too spacey and in my own head – I think too much like a writer. And I don’t want to be away from my family for that long. But maybe one day, we’ll see… I would like to be in charge of something at some point.
MALIK: We all have people we ‘look up to’; who in this town would you like to work with but you haven’t yet?
DOUG: Would like to work with Ridley Scott and David Fincher. JJ Abrams would be amazing – inspiring and I think we’d learn a lot. I really admire Alexander Payne and the Coen Brothers but probably will never get to work for either.
MALIK: What are your personal favorite movies that you’ve seen lately?
DOUG: Inglorious Basterds (my favorite movie of the last few years alongside ‘No Country For Old Men’.) A Simple Man. The Visitor. Star Trek. The Hangover (second time, just as good).
MALIK: Do you prefer writing the bigger movies or do you prefer something smaller in scope?
DOUG: I find the bigger movies easier, but I like both. I do love imagining action sequences and balancing all these different story lines. But I also like character and having the chance to just let a character be. So I like both.
MALIK: Everyone has a different Hollywood strategy (one for me, one for them for example). What’s yours?
DOUG: Try to pay attention in meetings 
Also, love the process.
MALIK: Good advice. You have a writing partner correct (Carlo Bernard)? How would you compare that to writing on your own?
DOUG: The benefits are you have two sets of eyes and two minds at work – so you get a pretty polished first draft with a lot of ideas. The downside is you have to compromise from the very beginning. But maybe that helps us to be better collaborators.
MALIK: I thought I had it bad being from Kansas City but… You’re a Detroit Lions fan? What was your take on the Matt Millen era? How about the direction your team is going?
DOUG: Is that first one a question? I guess you can’t believe I’m a really a Detroit Lions fan? It’s true. Born and raised on it, so I’m stuck.
I’m not sure Matt Millen realizes how much pain and suffering he caused me. I feel very angry at him in a way I never have been at a public figure. Probably the way people felt about Nixon.
MALIK: (laughing out loud at the Nixon analogy)
DOUG: I’m encouraged. They seem to actually have a plan. It’s been so long since I got that great feeling of anticipation and hope you get every time the offense comes on the field. Stafford brings that. And it’s been even longer since I got that feeling of strength and aggression when our defense comes out. Suh brings that for sure. So those two things are enough to be thankful for, for now. But I’ve been burned so many times with false hope…
MALIK: Jamaal Charles or Adrian Peterson, who’s going first in the fantasy draft this year? Or is it someone else?
DOUG: I would have to say Chris Johnson, unless his contract thing holds him up.
MALIK: Finally the big question: Does someone in our league draft Big Ben?
DOUG: For sure. You can draft him low, wait four games – and then maybe you end up with a starter you can swap in based on match-ups.
MALIK: Well, let me wrap this up by saying Good Luck this weekend and Congrats on the future projects! It’s been fun! Looking forward to our fantasy draft!
