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Brian Helgeland
Brian Helgeland
	Helgeland in 2013
Born	Brian Thomas Helgeland; January 17, 1961 (age 63); Providence, Rhode Island, U.S.
Alma mater	University of Massachusetts Dartmouth; Loyola Marymount University
Occupations	Screenwriter; director; producer;
Years active	1988–present
Notable work	L.A. Confidential; Mystic River
Awards	Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay; L.A. Confidential (1997)

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.

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.^[3]^[4]^[5]^[6]

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.^[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

Helgeland and his wife Nancy have two sons.^[17]

Filmography

Film

Year	Title	Director	Writer	Producer	Notes
1988	A Nightmare on Elm Street 4: The Dream Master	No	Yes	No
1988	976-EVIL	No	Yes	No
1992	Highway to Hell	No	Yes	Yes
1995	Assassins	No	Yes	No
1997	L.A. Confidential	No	Yes	No	Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay Nominated - BAFTA Award for Best Adapted Screenplay Nominated - Golden Globe Award for Best Screenplay
	Conspiracy Theory	No	Yes	No
	The Postman	No	Yes	No	Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Screenplay
1999	Payback	Yes	Yes	No
2001	A Knight's Tale	Yes	Yes	Yes	Also executive soundtrack producer
2002	Blood Work	No	Yes	No
2003	Mystic River	No	Yes	No	Nominated - Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay Nominated - BAFTA Award for Best Adapted Screenplay Nominated - Golden Globe Award for Best Screenplay
2003	The Order	Yes	Yes	Yes
2004	Man on Fire	No	Yes	No
2009	The Taking of Pelham 123	No	Yes	No
2009	Cirque du Freak: The Vampire's Assistant	No	Yes	No
2010	Green Zone	No	Yes	No
2010	Robin Hood	No	Yes	No
2013	42	Yes	Yes	No
2015	Legend	Yes	Yes	No
2020	Spenser Confidential	No	Yes	No
2023	Finestkind	Yes	Yes	No
2024	The Killer	No	Yes	No

Television


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

Year	Title	Award	Result
1997	L.A. Confidential	Boston Society of Film Critics Award for Best Screenplay	Won
		Broadcast Film Critics Association Award for Best Screenplay	Won
		Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Best Screenplay	Won
		Edgar Allan Poe Award for Best Motion Picture Screenplay	Won
		Florida Film Critics Circle Award for Best Screenplay	Won
		Las Vegas Film Critics Society Award for Best Screenplay	Won
		London Critics Circle Film Award for Screenwriter of the Year	Won
		Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award for Best Screenplay	Won
		National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Screenplay	Won
		New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Screenplay	Won
		Online Film Critics Society Award for Best Screenplay	Won
		San Diego Film Critics Society Award for Best Adapted Screenplay	Won
		Satellite Award for Best Adapted Screenplay	Won
		Society of Texas Film Critics Award for Best Adapted Screenplay	Won
		Southeastern Film Critics Association Award for Best Adapted Screenplay	Won
		USC Scripter Award	Won
		Writers Guild of America Award for Best Adapted Screenplay	Won
1999	Payback	Cognac Festival du Film Policier Audience Award	Won
2003	Mystic River	National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Screenplay	Won
		PEN Center USA West Literary Award for Screenplay	Won
		Satellite Award for Best Adapted Screenplay	Won
		Southeastern Film Critics Association Award for Best Adapted Screenplay	Won
		USC Scripter Award	Won
		Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association Award for Best Adapted Screenplay	Won
		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	Nominated
2013	42	Hochi Film Award for Best Foreign Language Film	Won
2013	42	Image Award for Outstanding Writing in a Motion Picture	Nominated
2023	Finestkind	Writers Guild of America Award for Best TV & New Media Motion Pictures	Nominated