as in scripts
the written form of a story prepared for film production
each actor will be given a copy of the screenplay to study
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Recent Examples of screenplays
One thing the three original and three adapted screenplays chosen to be featured on this year’s THR Writers Roundtable have in common is the theme of trauma and grief.
—
Beatrice Verhoeven, HollywoodReporter, 6 Jan. 2026
As part of the Academy’s deal with YouTube, Google Arts & Culture will digitize the Academy Collection, more than 52 million items including films, photos, posters, screenplays, props and costumes.
—Susan Shelley, Oc Register, 20 Dec. 2025
Following a selection process, three screenplays were reviewed and chosen by The Horror Section and WeShort teams for their originality, craft, and cinematic potential.
—Brent Lang, Variety, 18 Dec. 2025
The annual list compiles the industry’s favorite screenplays that made the rounds in Hollywood without being produced.
—Christian Zilko, IndieWire, 9 Dec. 2025
His short stories are confessional; so are many of his plays, and certainly several of the screenplays.
—Helen Shaw, New Yorker, 26 Nov. 2025
The publishing division’s Screenplay Collection is a big seller on the site and features original screenplays, new writing and behind-the-scenes materials from films such as Robert Eggers’s The Lighthouse, Greta Gerwig’s Lady Bird, Barry Jenkins’s Moonlight, and Ari Aster’s Hereditary.
—Jill Goldsmith, Deadline, 25 Nov. 2025
Those screenplays piled up on his desk aren’t going to read themselves.
—David Fear, Rolling Stone, 23 Nov. 2025
Rather than the stiff alien chitchat that dots his own screenplays, the characters in The Favourite trade the witty, venomous bon mots of The Great creator Tony McNamara.
—A.a. Dowd, Vulture, 24 Oct. 2025
Beatrice Verhoeven, HollywoodReporter, 6 Jan. 2026
As part of the Academy’s deal with YouTube, Google Arts & Culture will digitize the Academy Collection, more than 52 million items including films, photos, posters, screenplays, props and costumes.
—Susan Shelley, Oc Register, 20 Dec. 2025
Following a selection process, three screenplays were reviewed and chosen by The Horror Section and WeShort teams for their originality, craft, and cinematic potential.
—Brent Lang, Variety, 18 Dec. 2025
The annual list compiles the industry’s favorite screenplays that made the rounds in Hollywood without being produced.
—Christian Zilko, IndieWire, 9 Dec. 2025
His short stories are confessional; so are many of his plays, and certainly several of the screenplays.
—Helen Shaw, New Yorker, 26 Nov. 2025
The publishing division’s Screenplay Collection is a big seller on the site and features original screenplays, new writing and behind-the-scenes materials from films such as Robert Eggers’s The Lighthouse, Greta Gerwig’s Lady Bird, Barry Jenkins’s Moonlight, and Ari Aster’s Hereditary.
—Jill Goldsmith, Deadline, 25 Nov. 2025
Those screenplays piled up on his desk aren’t going to read themselves.
—David Fear, Rolling Stone, 23 Nov. 2025
Rather than the stiff alien chitchat that dots his own screenplays, the characters in The Favourite trade the witty, venomous bon mots of The Great creator Tony McNamara.
—A.a. Dowd, Vulture, 24 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for screenplays
scripts
Noun
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Copies of my scripts (many signed by the actors who had lifted my words off the page) were stacked along the shelves.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
8 Jan. 2026
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But none of these enticements can conceal the absence of scripts and direction that set a distinctive mood, then deftly navigate every deliberate shift.—
Judy Berman,
Time,
8 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Screenplays.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/screenplays. Accessed 16 Jan. 2026.
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