The Black List
The premier screenplay hosting platform where Hollywood discovers new writers
Overview
The Black List began as an annual survey of Hollywood executives' favorite unproduced screenplays and has grown into the industry's most prestigious script hosting and evaluation platform. For actors who write, it offers a direct pipeline to agents, managers, and producers actively seeking material.
Writers upload screenplays and can purchase professional evaluations scored on a scale of one to ten. Scripts that receive high scores are highlighted to industry professionals and can lead to representation, option deals, or production opportunities.
How It Works
Hundreds of Black List scripts have been produced into feature films, including multiple Academy Award winners. The platform carries significant credibility, and a high-scoring evaluation can open doors that are otherwise extremely difficult to access.
Hosting a script costs $30 per month, and professional evaluations cost an additional fee per read. The investment is meaningful, but a strong evaluation score can generate substantial industry interest.
Who Uses It
Recommended for actor-writers with polished, market-ready screenplays who want exposure to working industry professionals. Make sure your script has been thoroughly workshopped before uploading, as first impressions on the platform matter greatly. The Black List also publishes an annual list of the most-liked unproduced screenplays as voted by industry executives, and scripts hosted on the platform are eligible for inclusion. Several Black List alumni have gone on to win Academy Awards, including scripts for Juno, Slumdog Millionaire, and The King's Speech.
Pricing & Plans
The Black List charges $30 per month to host a single screenplay on the platform, making it visible to industry professionals who browse the database. Professional evaluations cost $100 each and provide a detailed written assessment along with a numerical score on a scale of one to ten. Scripts that receive an evaluation score of 8 or higher are automatically highlighted and promoted to industry members, generating significant additional visibility. You can host multiple scripts simultaneously, with each one incurring the $30 monthly hosting fee independently. There is no free tier for writers, though industry professionals can browse the platform at no cost. The combination of hosting and evaluation fees means that a single script with two evaluations will cost approximately $260 for the first month alone. Compared to Coverfly's free model, The Black List is a significant financial investment, but the quality of industry exposure it provides is substantially higher for scripts that score well.
Pros & Cons
What's Great
The Black List's most powerful advantage is its unmatched credibility and prestige within the Hollywood development community, as it is the single most recognized platform for screenplay discovery in the industry. Scripts that score 8 or above receive genuine attention from agents, managers, and producers who actively browse the platform looking for material to represent or option. The professional evaluations are written by experienced industry readers who provide detailed, constructive feedback that goes well beyond a simple pass or recommend, making each evaluation valuable as a developmental tool even if the score is not high enough to trigger promotion. The platform's track record of producing commercially successful and critically acclaimed films gives writers a legitimate pathway from unknown to produced in a way that no other platform can match. The monthly hosting model creates a sense of urgency and momentum, encouraging writers to engage actively with the platform rather than uploading a script and forgetting about it. The Black List also runs an annual screenwriting lab and other programs that provide additional development opportunities for promising writers.
What Could Be Better
The cost structure is prohibitive for many writers, as hosting a single script for six months with two evaluations totals approximately $380, and there is no guarantee of any return on that investment if the script does not score well. Evaluations are subjective and inconsistent, with some writers reporting significantly different scores for the same script across multiple evaluations, raising questions about the reliability of the scoring system. Scripts that receive scores below 7 essentially receive no meaningful industry exposure through the platform, meaning the hosting fee provides little value beyond the evaluation feedback itself. The monthly hosting fee continues to accrue regardless of whether your script is being viewed or downloaded, and there is no way to pause hosting without removing your script entirely. The platform heavily favors certain commercial genres over experimental, arthouse, or unconventional material, which may disadvantage writers working outside mainstream commercial filmmaking. The competitive nature of the scoring system can be psychologically discouraging, as receiving a low evaluation on a script you have invested months or years in is a genuinely difficult experience.
Our Recommendation
The Black List is recommended for actor-writers who have completed, polished, market-ready screenplays in commercially viable genres and are prepared to invest financially in professional exposure. If your script has already received positive feedback from trusted industry readers, acting teachers, or writing group peers, the platform can amplify that signal to a much larger professional audience. Writers who are still in the early stages of developing their craft should invest in classes, workshops, and peer feedback before spending money on Black List evaluations that may return discouraging scores. If you write primarily for television rather than features, the platform is less useful, as its strength lies predominantly in feature screenplay discovery. For writers on a tight budget, Coverfly offers free competition tracking and industry visibility, and the Nicholl Fellowship provides prestigious recognition at a much lower cost. The ideal Black List user is someone with a genuinely polished script who understands the financial risk and is prepared for the possibility that their evaluation may not reach the promotional threshold.
Pro Tips
Never upload a first draft or a script that has not been through multiple rounds of revision and feedback, as your evaluation score becomes permanently associated with that script on the platform and low scores cannot be erased. Request at least two evaluations rather than one, as a single evaluation is inherently more subjective and a second read provides a more reliable consensus signal of your script's quality. Read the detailed written feedback from your evaluations carefully and use it as a development tool, even if the scores are disappointing, because the readers are experienced and their notes are often genuinely insightful. Time your hosting strategically around periods when the industry is most active in development, typically January through April and September through November, rather than during the slower summer months. If your first evaluation comes back below a 7, consider pausing your hosting, revising based on the feedback, and resubmitting rather than accumulating additional months of hosting fees on a script that is not generating industry interest. Keep your writer profile bio concise and professional, highlighting any relevant acting credits or industry connections that might give a reader additional context for your perspective as a writer.