Brian Thomas Helgeland (born January 17, 1961)[1] is an American screenwriter, film producer, and director. He is best known for writing the screenplays for the films L.A. Confidential and Mystic River.[2] He also wrote and directed the films 42, a biopic of Jackie Robinson, and Legend, about the rise and fall of the infamous London gangsters the Kray twins. His work on L.A. Confidential earned him the Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay.
Brian Helgeland | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Helgeland in 2013 | |
| Born | Brian Thomas Helgeland January 17, 1961 Providence, Rhode Island, U.S. |
| Alma mater | University of Massachusetts Dartmouth Loyola Marymount University |
| Occupations |
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| Years active | 1988–present |
| Notable work | L.A. Confidential Mystic River |
| Awards | Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay L.A. Confidential (1997) |
Early life
editHelgeland 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.[3][4][5][6]
Career
editHelgeland'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.[6] 976-EVIL marked the directorial debut of Freddy Krueger portrayer Robert Englund, who went on to recommend Helgeland as New Line Cinema 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.[7] In 1990, Helgeland and Manny Coto sold a script, The Ticking Man, for $1 million, but the film was never made.[8]
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."[6][9]
Helgeland wrote and directed the films Payback (1999), A Knight's Tale (2001), The Order (2003), 42 (2013) and Legend (2015). 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.[10] In early 2008, he was attached to shape the script of the thriller Green Zone[11] after screenwriter Tom Stoppard had to drop out,[12] 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, replacing screenwriter David Koepp. The film was released on June 12, 2009.[13]
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.[14] 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.[15] Former Game of Thrones showrunners D. B. Weiss and David Benioff would also be executive producers for whichever project is picked up by HBO.[15][16]
Personal life
editHelgeland and his wife Nancy have two sons.[17]
Filmography
editFilm
editTelevision
edit| Year | Title | Director | Writer | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1989-1990 | Friday the 13th: The Series | No | Yes | Episodes: "Crippled Inside", "Mightier Than the Sword" |
| 1996 | Tales from the Crypt | Yes | Yes | Episode: "A Slight Case of Murder" |
Additional Awards
editReferences
edit- ^ Rose, Mike (January 17, 2023). "Today's famous birthdays list for January 17, 2023 includes celebrities James Earl Jones, Jim Carrey". Cleveland.com. Retrieved January 17, 2023.
- ^ Helgeland profile, The New York Times. Retrieved 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. September 6, 2003. Retrieved April 26, 2010.
- ^ Helgeland profile, filmreference.com. Retrieved April 11, 2014
- ^ Profile Archived April 13, 2014, at the Wayback Machine, southcoasttoday.com. Retrieved April 11, 2014
- ^ a b c "Screenwriters' Lecture: Brian Helgeland". October 26, 2012.
- ^ Million Dollar Babies, New York
- ^ Welkos, Robert W. (May 28, 1995). "Megabucks Turn to Megabusts". Los Angeles Times. ISSN 0458-3035. Retrieved March 10, 2019.
- ^ Gray, Iain (January 23, 2007). "The booby prize that beats the Oscars". The Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on January 28, 2011. Retrieved March 10, 2010.
- ^ The Bourne Supremacy (2004) profile, IMDb. Retrieved April 11, 2014.
- ^ Michael Fleming (January 9, 2008). "Amy Ryan set for Greengrass thriller". Variety. Retrieved January 22, 2008.
- ^ Richard Brooks (August 12, 2007). "The Bourne Ultimatum – Biteback". The Sunday Times.
- ^ "Richard Donner And Mr. Beaks Talk INSIDE MOVES!". Aint It Cool News. February 19, 2009.
- ^ Holloway, Daniel (May 4, 2017). "'Game of Thrones' Spinoffs in the Works at HBO". Variety. Retrieved May 4, 2017.
- ^ a b Goldberg, Lesley (May 4, 2017). "'Game of Thrones': HBO Exploring Four Different Follow-Up Series". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved May 5, 2017.
- ^ Blistein, Jon (May 4, 2017). "HBO Preps 'Game of Thrones' Spin-Off Series With George R.R. Martin". Rolling Stone. Retrieved May 6, 2017.
- ^ "Brian Helgeland - Biography". IMDb.
External links
edit- Brian Helgeland at IMDb
- ‹The template AllMovie name is being considered for deletion.› Brian Helgeland at AllMovie