Brian Helgeland | |
|---|---|
| Born | Brian Thomas Helgeland January 17, 1961 Providence, Rhode Island, U.S. |
| Alma mater | University of Massachusetts Dartmouth Loyola Marymount University |
| Occupation | Director, producer, screenwriter |
| Years active | 1988–present |
Brian Thomas Helgeland (born January 17, 1961) is an American screenwriter, film producer and director. He is most known for writing the screenplays for L.A. Confidential (for which he received the Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay), Mystic River, and A Nightmare on Elm Street 4: The Dream Master.[1]
Helgeland also wrote and directed 42 (2013), a biopic of Jackie Robinson, and Legend (2015), about the rise and fall of the infamous London gangsters, the Kray twins.
Early life[]
Helgeland was born in Providence, Rhode Island, to Norwegian-born parents Aud-Karin and Thomas Helgeland, and was raised in nearby New Bedford, Massachusetts. He majored in English at University of Massachusetts Dartmouth before following his father's work fishing scallop.
One cold winter day in 1985 made Helgeland consider another job, after finding a book about film schools.
Helgeland eventually settled on a career in film, considering his love for movies. He applied for the film school at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles, as it was the only one which could accept him in the middle of the semester.[2][3][4][5]
Career[]
Helgeland's agent arranged him a meeting with Rhet Topham, who had an idea for a horror comedy film but was having difficulty writing it. The resulting film was 976-EVIL, which the duo managed to sell for $12,000.[5] 976-EVIL marked the directorial debut of Freddy Krueger portrayer Robert Englund, who went on to recommend Helgeland as New Line Pictures wanted to do a new A Nightmare on Elm Street film. Helgeland was paid $70,000 to do what would become A Nightmare on Elm Street 4: The Dream Master. Both films were released in 1988, with The Dream Master hitting theaters earlier. Another script, Highway to Hell, earned Helgeland $275,000 and got a film release in 1992.[6]
In 1998, Helgeland won both an Academy Award (for Best Adapted Screenplay with L.A. Confidential) and a Razzie (for The Postman) the same year. Only one person had previously achieved the dubious feat (Alan Menken in 1993), and only one other (Sandra Bullock in 2010) has achieved it since. He accepted the Razzie and became only the fourth person in its history to be personally presented with the statuette. He keeps the statues of both the Oscar and the Razzie on his mantle as "a reminder of Hollywood's idealistic nature and unrealistic expectations."[5][7]
Helgeland wrote and directed the films A Knight's Tale (2001), The Order (2003) and 42 (2013). He has worked with director Clint Eastwood twice, in 2002 on Blood Work, and in 2003 on Mystic River, for which he was nominated for an Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay, and has written an as yet unproduced adaptation of Moby-Dick.
In 2004, Helgeland co-wrote the screenplay for the major motion picture The Bourne Supremacy, for which he was uncredited.[8] In early 2008, he was attached to shape the script of the thriller Green Zone[9] after screenwriter Tom Stoppard had to drop out,[10] again collaborating with director Paul Greengrass, whom he worked with on The Bourne Supremacy, as well as reuniting with actor Matt Damon, who played Jason Bourne/David Webb. Helgeland wrote the screenplay for the remake of The Taking of Pelham 123. The film was released on June 12, 2009.[11]
On May 4, 2017, HBO announced that Helgeland is one of four writers working on a potential pilot for a Game of Thrones spin-off. In addition to Helgeland, Carly Wray, Max Borenstein, and Jane Goldman are also working on potential pilots.[12] Helgeland has been working and communicating with George R. R. Martin, the author of A Song of Ice and Fire, the series of novels upon which the original series is based.[13] Current Game of Thrones showrunners D. B. Weiss and David Benioff would also be executive producers for whichever project is picked up by HBO.[13][14]
Works[]
Films[]
| Year | Feature film | Credit/Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1988 | A Nightmare on Elm Street 4: The Dream Master | Writer | |
| 976-EVIL | Writer | ||
| 1992 | Highway to Hell | Writer/Producer | |
| 1995 | Assassins | Writer | |
| 1997 | L.A. Confidential | Writer | Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay Boston Society of Film Critics Award for Best Screenplay Broadcast Film Critics Association Award for Best Screenplay Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Best Screenplay Edgar Allan Poe Award for Best Motion Picture Screenplay Florida Film Critics Circle Award for Best Screenplay Las Vegas Film Critics Society Award for Best Screenplay London Critics Circle Film Award for Screenwriter of the Year Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award for Best Screenplay National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Screenplay New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Screenplay Online Film Critics Society Award for Best Screenplay San Diego Film Critics Society Award for Best Adapted Screenplay Satellite Award for Best Adapted Screenplay Society of Texas Film Critics Award for Best Adapted Screenplay Southeastern Film Critics Association Award for Best Adapted Screenplay USC Scripter Award Writers Guild of America Award for Best Adapted Screenplay Nominated — Golden Globe Award for Best Screenplay - Motion Picture Nominated — BAFTA Award for Best Adapted Screenplay |
| Conspiracy Theory | Writer | ||
| The Postman | Writer | Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Screenplay | |
| 1999 | Payback | Writer/Director | Cognac Festival du Film Policier Audience Award |
| 2001 | A Knight's Tale | Writer/Director/Producer | |
| 2002 | Blood Work | Writer | |
| 2003 | Mystic River | Writer | National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Screenplay PEN Center USA West Literary Award for Screenplay Satellite Award for Best Adapted Screenplay Southeastern Film Critics Association Award for Best Adapted Screenplay USC Scripter Award Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association Award for Best Adapted Screenplay Nominated — Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay Nominated — Golden Globe Award for Best Screenplay - Motion Picture Nominated — BAFTA Award for Best Adapted Screenplay Nominated — American Screenwriters Association Award Nominated — Broadcast Film Critics Association Award for Best Screenplay Nominated — Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Best Screenplay Nominated — Edgar Allan Poe Award for Best Motion Picture Screenplay Nominated — Edgar Allan Poe Award for Best Motion Picture Screenplay Nominated — London Critics Circle Film Award for Screenwriter of the Year Nominated — Online Film Critics Society Award for Best Screenplay Nominated — Writers Guild of America Award for Best Adapted Screenplay |
| The Order | Writer/Director/Producer | ||
| 2004 | Man on Fire | Writer | |
| 2009 | The Taking of Pelham 123 | Writer | |
| Cirque du Freak: The Vampire's Assistant | Writer | ||
| 2010 | Green Zone | Writer | |
| Robin Hood | Writer | ||
| 2013 | 42 | Writer/Director | Hochi Film Award for Best Foreign Language Film Nominated — Image Award for Outstanding Writing in a Motion Picture |
| 2015 | Legend | Writer/Director | |
| 2019 | Gemini Man | Writer | Filming |
References[]
- ↑ Helgeland profile, New York Times; accessed April 11, 2014.
- ↑ "Film-makers on film: Brian Helgeland talks to Mark Monahan about Stuart Rosenberg's Cool Hand Luke (1967)". The Daily Telegraph (London, UK). 2003-09-06. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/film/3601944/Film-makers-on-film-Brian-Helgeland.html. Retrieved 2010-04-26.
- ↑ Helgeland profile, filmreference.com; accessed April 11, 2014
- ↑ Profile, southcoasttoday.com; accessed April 11, 2014
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 "Screenwriters' Lecture: Brian Helgeland".<templatestyles src="Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css"></templatestyles>
- ↑ Million Dollar Babies, New York Magazine
- ↑ Gray, Iain (2007-01-23). "The booby prize that beats the Oscars". Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 2010-03-10.<templatestyles src="Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css"></templatestyles>
- ↑ The Bourne Supremacy (2004) profile, imdb.com; accessed April 11, 2014.
- ↑ Michael Fleming (2008-01-09). "Amy Ryan set for Greengrass thriller". Variety. http://www.variety.com/article/VR1117978765.html?categoryid=13&cs=1. Retrieved 2008-01-22.
- ↑ Richard Brooks (2007-08-12). "The Bourne Ultimatum - Biteback". The Sunday Times.
- ↑ "Richard Donner And Mr. Beaks Talk INSIDE MOVES!". Aint It Cool News. February 19, 2009.<templatestyles src="Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css"></templatestyles>
- ↑ Holloway, Daniel (May 4, 2017). "'Game of Thrones' Spinoffs in the Works at HBO". Variety. https://variety.com/2017/tv/news/game-of-thrones-spinoff-hbo-1202409434/. Retrieved May 4, 2017.
- ↑ 13.0 13.1 Goldberg, Lesley (May 4, 2017). "'Game of Thrones': HBO Exploring Four Different Follow-Up Series". The Hollywood Reporter. http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/live-feed/game-thrones-hbo-exploring-four-follow-up-series-1000251. Retrieved May 5, 2017.
- ↑ Blistein, Jon (May 4, 2017). "HBO Preps 'Game of Thrones' Spin-Off Series With George R.R. Martin". Rolling Stone. https://www.rollingstone.com/tv/news/hbo-preps-game-of-thrones-spin-off-with-george-rr-martin-w480764. Retrieved May 6, 2017.
External links[]
Template:Brian Helgeland
Template:National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Screenplay