SYNOPSIS

Scripted by Aaron Sorkin, this is based on Ben Mezrich's 2009 novel The Accidental Billionaires: The Founding Of Facebook, A Tale of Sex, Money, Genius, and Betrayal. The film will focus on the evolution of Facebook from its 2004 creation on the Harvard campus by sophomore Mark Zuckerberg (Jesse Eisenberg) to a juggernaut with hundreds of millions of members. The company was reportedly valued at $16 billion in 2008 when Microsoft outbid Google to invest $240 million for a 1.6% stake in the company. Along with the events that created the phenomenon, the film will cover how these unimaginable overnight riches changed the lives of Zuckerberg and his Facebook cohorts. Justin Timberlake plays Sean Parker and Andrew Garfield plays Eduardo Saverin.

PREVIEW NOTES

• Variety reports that Aaron Sorkin will write the project and Scott Rudin is producing for Columbia Pictures. - 2008-08-27
• Variety reports that Jesse Eisenberg will play Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg - Justin Timberlake will play Sean Parker, the Napster co-founder who became Facebook's founding president
• and Andrew Garfield will play Eduardo Saverin, the Facebook co-founder who fell out with Zuckerberg over money. Production will begin next month in Boston and then move to Los Angeles. Scott Rudin, Michael De Luca, Dana Brunetti and Cean Chaffin will produce. Kevin Spacey is exec producer. - 2009-09-22