Story of Author Who Wrote Husband a Dating Profile as She Was Dying Will Be Made Into a Movie

Author Amy Krouse Rosenthal died in March after writing a devastating “dating profile” for her husband, from the perspective of a woman with little time left. Rosenthal was fighting ovarian cancer as she composed the column, titled “You May Want to Marry My Husband,” for the New York Times Modern Love section.

Rosenthal was already a well-known writer, who penned many children’s books and memoirs. She also had a following online, where she engaged with fans through simple and creative concepts, like Instagram-based idea mine Project 1,2,3, which is being continued after her death by her daughter, Paris Rosenthal.

Her column about her husband Jason, however, catapulted Rosenthal and her family’s profile, filled as it was with the heartbreaking detail of a shared life ended by cancer. It also showed an incredible capacity for understanding, urging Jason to fall in love again someday:

I want more time with Jason. I want more time with my children. I want more time sipping martinis at the Green Mill Jazz Club on Thursday nights. But that is not going to happen. I probably have only a few days left being a person on this planet. So why I am doing this?

I am wrapping this up on Valentine’s Day, and the most genuine, non-vase-oriented gift I can hope for is that the right person reads this, finds Jason, and another love story begins.

I’ll leave this intentional empty space below as a way of giving you two the fresh start you deserve.

Rosenthal’s story is now being made into a film, according to Variety. The movie rights to Rosenthal’s piece have been bought by Universal, outbidding Paramount, Sony, Netflix, and Studio 8. Rosenthal’s publishing agent, Amy Rennert, guided the family through the negotiations. The Hollywood Reporter says insiders place the winning bid to “at least mid-six figures against low-seven figures.” Marc Platt, best known for films like Legally Blonde and La La Land, is signed on to produce. Talks about a movie had begun following the column’s success, but were put on pause after Rosenthal’s death just ten days later.