'Bridge to Terabithia' Hits the Big Screen

Author Katherine Paterson's son writes screenplay to Newbery-winning novel

By Joan Oleck -- School Library Journal, 2/1/2007

When Katherine Paterson published Bridge to Terabithia (HarperCollins, 1977), critics said kids couldn't cope with a story about a boy named Jess who learns to deal with the death of his best friend, Leslie. But Paterson proved them wrong—and she went on to receive a Newbery Medal and worldwide acclaim.

Fast forward to the 1990s, with the spotlight this time on a different Paterson—David, the author's son—who was once an eight-year-old boy who tragically lost his best friend, Lisa.

This month, Walt Disney Pictures brings Bridge to Terabithia to film, based on a screenplay written by the younger Paterson. Yet despite his mother's blessing and influence, the Manhasset, NY, resident says efforts to sell his screenplay were met with the same chilly response that his mother encountered. “If you can believe this,” he adds, “I did meet with some companies that asked if I could just 'hurt' Leslie a little bit—put her in a light coma and then bring her out.”

Thankfully, those moviemakers didn't prevail, and on February 16, viewers will see a film version that remains faithful to the book.

To Paterson, it's understandable that moviegoers will focus on Leslie's untimely death, but “it's really not about Terabithia, it's really not about the death of Leslie. It's really about someone who doesn't feel that he fits in the world. I think so many kids and adults have that experience.”

Paterson, 40, a playwright who's optioned three other screenplays, has acted in TV soaps, taught screenwriting, and volunteers as a Manhasset firefighter. He also volunteered at the Twin Towers on 9/11, where thousands died. But Paterson says he's come to terms with death's place in life. Like his mother's book, he says, life doesn't necessarily offer a “happy ending.”