The Third Act is the first screenwriting instructional book to focus entirely on that most important part of a script - the ending.

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A film’s ending is crucial. It's the last thing an audience sees before leaving the theater, and often the first thing it remembers long afterward. Indeed, it's no stretch to suggest that, more than any other part of the film, the ending determines whether the audience likes a film or not.

By extension, the ending of a script is probably the thing that will most influence the reader after they've put it down. An otherwise great script will likely be passed on if it does not end well.

As director Stephen Frears once said: "Often I read something and it’s wonderful and then it stops halfway through and I say to myself: ‘I wonder if this will ever be finished.’ Somebody writes a good first act or a good first two acts and you think: ‘I wonder whether he can get the third act right.’"

The Third Act is the first screenwriting instructional book to focus entirely on that most important part of a script - the ending. Like the three-act paradigm for the entire screenplay, The Third Act offers a structure for the writer to follow when writing the last act of their script. No other screenwriting book offers this simple, unique approach to endings in a three-act story. Additionally, The Third Act provides suggestions as to which type of ending writers should consider for their particular story.

The book features detailed examinations of the endings of many memorable films, including ROCKY, RAIN MAN, GOOD WILL HUNTING, SAVING PRIVATE RYAN, CASABLANCA, THE BREAKFAST CLUB, SE7EN, LOST IN TRANSLATION, and GLADIATOR. A checklist is provided at the end of each chapter, offering the reader suggestions to apply in their writing based on the structural element being explored in that chapter. A longer and more comprehensive list of suggestions appears in an appendix.

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