Emma Barry's "You, Me, & the Conspiracy"

Emma Barry is a novelist, college lecturer, and former political staffer. She lives with her high school sweetheart and a menagerie of pets and children in Virginia, where she occasionally finds time to read and write.

Here Barry dreamcasts an adaptation of her new novel, You, Me, & the Conspiracy:

My new book is You, Me, & the Conspiracy, in which two history professors uncover a revolutionary-era secret society and must expose it or risk becoming its latest victims. As you can probably tell from my brief description, I was inspired by adventure romance films such as Indiana Jones (numbers 1 and 3 only), Romancing the Stone, The Mummy, and especially National Treasure. So not only do I have a fan cast for this movie, but I am also feral to see it on screen. It’s meant to be cinema!

First up we have Jessica Wilson, a preppy, rule-following assistant professor whose book was just rejected for publication. Devastated, she dives into the archives, where she discovers a coded message written by a Founding Father that sets the plot in motion. Jess has to be brilliant, warm, and maybe a little bit timid to start, but the tumultuous events in which she finds herself will make her blossom. I would love nothing more than to lure Emma Watson out of retirement and to see her play Jess.

Next is Calloway Morgan, an adjunct history professor with a chip on his shoulder the size of New England. Cal was kicked out of graduate school for giving a presentation about the conspiracy, and he is very much not over it. Jess represents everything Cal can’t stand…which makes it even more annoying that he’s attracted to her. The thing about Cal is that he’s grumpy and wounded, but he’s also soft and lonely under his shell. The right actor for this part will be able to nail both his prickliness and his pining, and so my vote is for David Corenswet. (Also, I would like to see him in Cal’s cabled sweaters and slutty little glasses.)

A crucial secondary character is Ellis Irving, an ex-special forces friend of Cal’s family who allows Jess and Cal to hide out in his 1970s Winnebago and who provides them with all kinds of tactical support. While he initially intimidates Jess, Ellis turns out to have a gooey center, and he encourages the romance in all kinds of surprising ways. I have no idea if he’d do it—it’s essentially a curmudgeon role—but whoa, would I love to see Walton Goggins play Ellis.

There are several other important minor characters, but if I casted them, that would spoil things, friends. So I guess you’ll just have to round things out when you read it after publication.

Visit Emma Barry's website.

My Book, The Movie: Bad Reputation.

--Marshal Zeringue