By Jay A. Fernandez and Borys Kit

Franklin Leonard, now an executive at Universal, has just released his 2009 Black List of the “most liked” screenplay of this past year. Leonard’s annual survey of industry friends and contacts began five years ago and arrives in email boxes just before the holidays (it began because he wanted some good scripts to read over vacation.)

At the top is Christopher Weekes‘ “The Muppet Man,” about Muppet creator Jim Henson, which the Henson Company is producing. Repped by WME and Circle of Confusion, Weekes is still relatively new to the writing game.

Second is veteran Aaron Sorkin’s screenplay for “The Social Network,” which David Fincher has been filming for an October release from Columbia. Another WME client, Sorkin has high-profile scripts for Columbia’s “Moneyball” and DreamWorks’ “The Trial of the Chicago 7″ moving toward production.

Third is Michael Perry’s screenplay, “The Voices,” which Vertigo Entertainment (”The Uninvited”) is producing. Perry, repped by UTA and Kaplan/Perrone, is another newcomer.

Fourth is Aaron Guzikowski’s “Prisoners,” a dark thriller that drew a lot of interest from studios and directors when it hit town before Warner Bros. ultimately grabbed it. Guzikowski is repped by WME and Madhouse.

The top female writer on the list is Ellen Rapoport, whose comedy, “Desperados,” landed in the eighth slot. Repped by CAA and Management 360, Rapoport has her script set up with Blumhouse and the Mark Gordon Company at Universal.

Even by quick scan, WME comes out well on top in repping lit talent on the list.

Unsurprisingly, as the list has gained in notoriety each year, many more of the scripts on the list have already been snatched up by studios and production companies. According to the list, very few of the scripts are currently available.

As such, the list now reps less an announcement of unknown talent than a validation of those newer writers who have already made headway into the screenwriting machine.

Still, kudos to all the writers getting this informal pat on the back for providing good reads.