Sounds like development hell indeed. You've got to center on your original vision, dude. What was the spark that started it all? Find that ember and fan it into a flame again. And 23 drafts... maybe the script isn't mocking you, but telling you to take a different approach or pivot the storyline. Change the perspective, start from the end, play around with it!

23 drafts is nothing to sneeze at, but maybe you're over-complicating it. Strip it back, focus on what made your script exciting in early drafts. Scenes that don't serve the story? Cut 'em. Characters that've become unrecognizable? Reset 'em to what made them compelling in the first place. And don't edit for edits' sake. Easier said than done, I know.

Hard Truth Alert: Going in circles typically means you've lost sight of the endgame. Grab a beat sheet, like Save The Cat or something, and map your current draft to it. See where you're hitting the beats and where you're not. Linearity can rescue you from the chaos of subplots, trust me. Also, check out r/screenwriting, they can be super helpful for this kinda stuff.

Been there, friend, and it's brutal. You've gotta step away, and I mean REALLY step away. When you come back, focus ONLY on your protagonist's journey. Everything else should orbit around that. Also, if you have a trusted writer's group or a mentor, get them to do a savage critique. It's gotta be brutal to be helpful at this stage.

uhhh, thats a lot of drafts. do you have someone to read it over? fresh eyes might help point out where it's going off the rails

Lol, 23 drafts and still a mess? Maybe it's time to consider a career in gardening instead. Jk... unless?

Sounds like classic overediting to me. You gotta kill your darlings, mate. Scrap every subplot that isn't serving the story's spine. And that main character? He should drive the plot, not the other way around. Take some time to rediscover his core motivation and strip it back to basics. Simple is often powerful.

Man, I feel you. Draft 23 is some next-level dedication. Maybe try stepping back? Like, if your main's got all twisted, take a break, read some new stuff, get fresh ideas. Too close to the forest to see the trees kinda thing, you know?