Vine may be on its way out, but one of the platform’s biggest stars is cashing in. Zach King, whose six-second, effects-driven tricks have allowed him to attract more than four million followers on Twitter’s six-second video app, has landed a three-book deal with HarperCollins. In addition, the film rights for the first book from that deal have been sold to Steven Spielberg’s Amblin Entertainment.
King’s first literary venture will be titled My Magical Life, and as with his videos, it will be led by a young man who can produce supernatural effects in real life. When he is sent to middle school, he must use his powers to become the most popular kid in his class. The book is due out in 2017, and King will pen two sequels to round out his deal with HarperCollins.
The Hollywood Reporter, which first reported King’s literature and film ventures, described the bidding war for My Magical Life as “a competitive auction.” HarperCollins, which ultimately won that auction, has worked with several other social media stars, including Hannah Hart and KSI.
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The feature film version of My Magical Life, optioned by Amblin, will see King serve as executive producer. “My team and I are overjoyed and honored to be partnering with Amblin to help bring a fun movie experience to the 24 million cumulative fans that tune in to our online videos,” he told The Hollywood Reporter. “This IP is close to my heart — I mean the character is literally a middle schooler version of me. I know that Amblin and my team are going to do something really special with the brand and give even more life to the backstory of this magical character and his family.”
Beyond Vine, King also has more than 16 million followers on Instagram and over one million subscribers on YouTube, so it’s safe to say his brand won’t be hurt too much when Twitter discontinues its six-second app in the near future.
