“Married scribes’ pics to square off”

Not sure if I’ve ever heard of anything quite like this:

As if screenwriters don’t have to deal with enough discouragement, scribes Paul Wernick and Rita Hsiao have a uniquely dispiriting situation looming.

When Columbia Pictures moved the wide release of its horror-comedy “Zombieland,” which Wernick wrote with Rhett Reese, up to Oct. 2, it was just taking advantage of an attractive fall date. But that same day, Disney/Pixar will rerelease “Toy Story 2” in a 3D version. That mega-hit was co-written by Hsiao.

Normally, this would just be two screenwriters competing for attention at the boxoffice. Happens every single weekend. Except that Wernick and Hsiao share a bathroom, a bank account and two kids.

“I’m no different than most people in Hollywood,” Wernick said. “Except this time I’m rooting against my wife, not my friends.”

Added Hsiao: “It would be wonderful for Paul to experience what it’s like to be №1 in something.”

Their kids have taken a pragmatic approach about who to root for:

“I want Dad to win,” Cayson said. “He gets residuals.”

Spoken like the true son of screenwriters.

To promote fairness, here’s the trailer for Zombieland:

And Toy Story 2: 3D:

Which one will you be going to see the weekend of October 2nd?

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