His introduction to Hollywood at 26 years old with the LETHAL WEAPON screenplay came with a $250k price tag.īlack also scored $1.75m for THE LAST BOY SCOUT, and broke records at the time with the $4m sale of THE LONG KISS GOODNIGHT. He also has numerous credits as a directors, producer and actor.īlack has a reputation for big spec sales. Shane Black is one of America’s most successful screenwriters. Terry continues to work in the industry and has certainly made a significant and lasting name and reputation for himself worldwide. His career culminated in the biggest spec-sale ever at the time, for Denzel Washington’s, DÉJÀ VU. With hits such as the ones listed above, it is no wonder why Terry is one of the highest paid screenwriters. PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN (the franchise).Terry is the screenwriter behind box office successful such as: His work is known and has been successful worldwide, and he is the figure behind numerous box office smash-hits. Rossio spent twenty years as one of Hollywood’s go-to-guys. Terry Rossio is one of the industry’s most recognisable, successful and longest-working American screenwriters, producers and storyboard artists.
Seth continues to be one of the most successful and recognisable face (and voices) in the US Film and TV industry, as well as being a prominent figure worldwide. TED received a $500m take on a $50m budget, whilst TED 2 also went on to gain great financial success. Not all of that’s for the writing, but Seth still stands as one very highly paid TV writer ever.ĭADS and BORDER TOWN have only added to the coffers. And in 2008, he was handed a $100m, 5-year deal by Fox for his hugely successful trio of comedy shows: Seth works primarily in the Comedy genre, but he has done work across the board. Seth is a writer, show-runner, voice artist, singer, Actor, Oscar host and warbler of big band showtunes. Seth Macfarlane is one of the most recognisable figures in the US Film and Television industry. This shows the marks of a great screenwriter. Unlike some screenwriters, David has avoided being pigeonholed his entire career. His work spans across genres, varying from: Of course, this is only a handful of his credits.ĭavid is highly versatile. Not to mention the JACK RYAN reboot and Johnny Depp flop MORTDECAI. and INDIANA JONES AND THE KINGDOM OF THE CRYSTAL SKULL.Some of David’s most well-known and successful film credits include: His PANIC ROOM earned him a cool $3m, whilst THE SUPERCONDUCTING SUPERCOLLIDER OF SPARKLE CREEK, WISCONSIN remains one very expensive unproduced spec, selling for $2.25m.ĭavid is also a pricey hired-hand on box office behemoths. He impressively ranks as the ninth most successful screenwriter of all time (US BOX OFFICE). He has made quite a name for himself as both a screenwriter and director, since he first started out in the industry in 1988.
Highest Paid Screenwriters, Number One : David Koepp…ĭavid Koepp is undoubtedly one of the planet’s screenwriting kings.ĭavid has had countless Hollywood success, which has left him ranking as one of the most successful and highest paid screenwriters in the industry.