Anatomy of a Megadeal: How Flight Attendant-Turned-Novelist T.J. Newman Sparked a Hollywood Bidding War for ‘Drowning’
variety.comBrent Lang Executive Editor Three years ago, T.J. Newman was handing out peanuts and pouring drinks for airplane passengers.
Last month, she was hustling between Zoom calls with Nicole Kidman and Jerry Bruckheimer as they tried to outbid each other for the rights to “Drowning,” her upcoming novel about a jetliner that crashes into the ocean.
It’s all part of an improbable Cinderella story that’s taken Newman, a flight attendant-turned-bestselling writer, from manning first-class cabins to becoming one of Hollywood’s most in-demand talents.
Newman admits she still hasn’t accepted her change in fortunes. “Any time I board a plane, I still want to get up and collect trash or help someone put their bag in an overhead bin,” she says. “I have to remind myself: You can sit and order a drink instead of serving it.” These days, she can spring for Champagne.
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