Netflix Acquires Rom-Com Spec Script 'Love Hard' for Producer McG

Netflix has acquired the rights to “Love Hard,” a romantic comedy spec script that will be produced by McG and Mary Viola on behalf of their banner Wonderland Sound and Vision, an individual with knowledge of the project tells TheWrap.

The spec script for “Love Hard” was written by Danny Mackey and Rebecca Ewing, a literary agent turned screenwriter. The spec is a rom-com described as “When Harry Met Sally” meets “Roxanne” (1987), though the specific plot details are being kept under wraps.

McG recently directed the Netflix adventure film “Rim of the World,” which was released in May. He and Viola are also next producing the comedies “Tall Girl” and “Holidate,” both also at Netflix.

Also Read: Netflix in August: Here's All of the New and Expiring Titles

Mackey previously has sold scripts for the TV comedies “Jackass of All Trades” to TBS and “B Team” to Fox. Ewing was a literary talent agent at UTA for six years and at ICM for two years more recently. “Love Hard” is the first script the two have written as a pair.

Ewing and Mackey are both represented by Verve and Echo Lake Entertainment, while Mackey is also represented by Myman Greenspan, and Ewing is represented by attorney Patti Felker. McG is represented by WME, Management 360 and Sloane, Offer, Weber and Dern.

Deadline first reported the news of Netflix’s acquisition.

17 Beloved Rom-Coms for Valentine's Day, From 'Notting Hill' to 'Silver Linings Playbook' (Photos)

It may be a Hallmark holiday, but these beloved films still bring us to tears every Valentine's Day.
Back in the 1940s, "The Philadelphia Story," Katherine Hepburn set the bar for fiery feminism as a society girl choosing between two beaus, Cary Grant and James Strewart.
MGM
The 1971 cult hit "Harold and Maude" is the best movie about an affair between a suicidal teen and an 80-year-old woman ever made, thanks to Ruth Gordon and Bud Cort.
Paramount
Woody Allen's witty and bittersweet "Annie Hall," which he directed and starred in with Diane Keaton, won the Best Picture Oscar and would be perfect for a 1977 time capsule (if you can watch Allen four decades on without squirming).
MGM
In the John Landis-directed 1988 hit "Coming to America," Eddie Murphy taught us -- hilariously -- to love whomever we want, just do it for the right reasons.
Paramount
Rob Reiner's 1989 hit "When Harry Met Sally..." is still remembered for Billy Crystal and Meg Ryan's iconic deli scene that prompted the line "I'll have what she's having" to be repeated by millions of movie-goers.
Columbia
Julia Roberts and Richard Gere were a prostitute and a businessman in the iconic Cinderella story, "Pretty Woman," and the 1990 R-rated romance raked in $460 million at the worldwide box office for Disney.
Disney
Andie MacDowell turns jaded weatherman Bill Murray around ... and around and around in 1993's "Groundhog Day." It only grossed $70 million for Columbia but became a huge home entertainment hit.
Columbia
Without Ben Stiller's burning love for Cameron Diaz, the Farrelly brothers' 1998 hit "There's Something About Mary" would have been just a $390 million-grossing gross-out flick.
Fox
Richard Curtis' followup to "Four Weddings and a Funeral" saw travel bookshop owner Hugh Grant woo Hollywood superstar Julia Roberts in the hip London neighborhood of "Notting Hill." The 1999 British comedy won over moviegoers on both sides of the Atlantic and earned a worldwide gross of $364 million.
Fox
Mel Gibson got more than he bargained for when he started reading the mind of Helen Hunt and other females in "What Women Want." So did Paramount, when the 2000 film took in $182 million domestically and $191 million abroad.
Paramount
Renée Zellweger had a tougher time loving herself than her two beaus in "Bridget Jones's Diary," which grossed $218 million globally in 2001.

Miramax
Nia Vardalos and John Corbett had Americans going "opa!" in 2002 as "My Big Fat Greek Wedding" took in $241 million domestically for IFC Films, which is still tops for both an indie film and a rom-com.
Universal
Katherine Heigl and Seth Rogen were a very odd couple in Judd Apatow's 2007 raunchy comedy hit "Knocked Up," which made $219 million at the box office.
Universal
Sarah Jessica Parker finally landed Mr. Big in the 2009 "Sex and the City" movie, and New Line joined in the celebration after bagging $415 million at the box office.
Warner Bros.
Jennifer Lawrence and Bradley Cooper fought mental illness and themselves to find love in David O. Russell's "Silver Linings Playbook," which grossed $236 million in 2012 for The Weinstein Company.
Weinstein Company
Battling the too-friendly frat boys next door strengthens the bond between Rose Byrne and Seth Rogen in "Neighbors," which took in $270 million worldwide in 2014.
Universal
"Trainwreck" put Amy Schumer's career on the fast track with its $110 million breakout at the box office in 2015.
Universal Pictures