By Walter Pincus June 2

Edward Snowden may have created a paper trail that he could later use to say he brought his questioning of National Security Agency activities to higher authorities.

That at least appears to be the case from the short April 5, 2013, e-mail the then-contractor sent to the NSA general counsels office inquiring about the hierarchy of legal authorities executive orders vs. statutes after a mandatory NSA training session.

Government officials released the e-mail Thursday.

Snowdens missive offered no criticism. The general counsels answer, three days later, said that executive orders have the force of law but cannot override a statute. Snowden was invited to call if he wanted to discuss the issue further.

He didnt, apparently.

At an April 18, 2013, meeting with then-Guardian columnist Glenn Greenwald, filmmaker Laura Poitras described e-mails shed received weeks before from Snowden (who was not disclosing his identity at the time) saying he would be providing documents to her within four to six weeks, according to Greenwalds book, No Place to Hide.

Snowden claimed during an NBC interview with Brian Williams on Wednesday that hed tried to be a whistleblower and had complained through official channels before turning to journalists.

He said there were e-mails to the general counsel and oversight and compliance folks and added, I reported that there were real problems with the way the NSA was interpreting its legal authorities. And the response more or less in bureaucratic language was you should stop asking questions.

In response, the government released the April 5 e-mail.

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A true whistleblower doesn’t behave like Edward Snowden ...

Edward Snowden's story: coming to a theater near you?

San Jose, Calif. (CNNMoney)

It's very possible, now that Oliver Stone has announced that he is writing a Snowden screenplay based on the book "The Snowden Files," published earlier this year by the Guardian reporter Luke Harding.

Stone and his producing partner Moritz Borman announced their plans -- and said Borman is "fast-tracking" the project -- in a press release on Monday.

The announcement comes on the heels of Sony Pictures Entertainment's acquisition of the rights to another book about the leaks: Glenn Greenwald's "No Place to Hide." Two well-known producers, Michael G. Wilson and Barbara Broccoli, are attached to that project.

Heightening the competition between the two projects, Greenwald has been publicly critical of Harding's book.

Greenwald's original stories based on Snowden's secret documents were published by the Guardian last June. Greenwald left the Guardian a few months later for a journalism startup called The Intercept.

Stone and Borman said Monday that Harding and others still at the Guardian "will also act as exclusive production and story consultants."

"This is one of the greatest stories of our time. A real challenge," Stone said in a statement. "I'm glad to have the Guardian working with us."

We'll see which, if either, film makes it into theaters.

See more here:
Snowden's leaks prompt two movies

"Beyond: Edward Snowden" is available in print and digital formats. Bluewater Productions

Edward Snowden has been called a hero and a traitor. The recently released comic "Beyond: Edward Snowden" takes a look at the whistleblower to explain what could have motivated him to commit one of the biggest leaks of classified information in U.S. history.

"I thought he was a fascinating and cryptic individual and I really wanted to learn more about the man behind the headlines," Valerie D'Orazio, the comic book's writer and a Marvel comics writer, told Crave. "I also thought, since he apparently came from a 'geek' cultural background, a comic book would be a very appropriate format to tell his story."

In research for the Bluewater Productions comic, D'Orazio was surprised to discover just how normal Snowden had been.

"He could have been any funny, charismatic person you might meet on a forum, talking about video games or anime or whatever, goofing around, and posting selfies," D'Orazio said.

While writing "Beyond: Edward Snowden," D'Orazio found it harder and harder to remain objective.

"My first intention was to make this a strictly objective educational comic on his life, but as I got further into the research I couldn't help but feel more emotionally invested in various aspects of the narrative," D'Orazio told Crave. "I think it is very important for the public to be made aware of the fact that their personal online communications and actions could be accessed by government agencies. That said, there were also some gaps and inconsistencies about Snowden's story that I acknowledge as well. So I like to think I've given a balanced viewpoint in the comic."

Artist Dan Lauer created the book's illustrations. Bluewater Productions

Narrowing down someone's life story into a comic book isn't an easy feat considering the word limitations for dialogue, and D'Orazio had to omit quite a few elements of Snowden's life for the sake of space.

"I would have liked to get more into his earlier years, because he had developed quite an interesting online persona," D'Orazio said. "At that time he was essentially taking a lot of 'glamour' photos, like you would do for a model's portfolio. When you consider everything that has happened up to the present day, it's kind of fascinating that he had this period of his life. As an adult he's still in the spotlight of the cameras."

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Edward Snowden stars in a comic book

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BRASILIA: Former intelligence contractor Edward Snowden, wanted by US authorities and currently living in Russia, said in a TV interview that he has applied for asylum in Brazil.

"I would love to live in Brazil," Snowden told Brazil's Globo TV on Sunday.

Snowden's temporary asylum in Russia expires in August. Washington has revoked his US passport, so his travel options are limited.

Snowden, who was interviewed with reporter Glenn Greenwald by his side, said that he has formally asked several countries for asylum, including Brazil.

Greenwald is an American living in Brazil. He writes for The Guardian and has published much of the information that Snowden has leaked.

Brazil's foreign ministry however has said that it has received no formal asylum request from Snowden.

In the interview Snowden said that he would not offer documents to any country in exchange for a safe haven, because asylum should be granted for humanitarian reasons.

However he said that he had more documents to release relating to US spying on countries that include Britain and Brazil.

When documents he released last year showed that US agencies had been spying on Brazil, President Dilma Rousseff cancelled a state visit to Washington.

In an earlier interview with NBC Snowden said that he was open to the possibility of clemency or amnesty, and would like to return home one day.

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Snowden seeks asylum in Brazil